The law that required Governor Scott’s signature is narrower than the one then-Rep. Jim Harrison and 11 co-sponsors introduced — and it expires on July 1, 2028.

by Compass Vermont

Governor Phil Scott signed H.512 today, enacting a new state-level regulation of the event ticketing market. The law that took his signature is narrower than the one then-Rep. Jim Harrison and 11 co-sponsors introduced — and it expires on July 1, 2028. Harrison resigned from the House in January, before the chamber debated the bill.

What the introduced bill proposed

The bill’s statement of purpose as introduced described a comprehensive consumer-protection regime: annual licensing for ticket resellers, minimum surety bonds to cover consumer losses, mandatory refund guarantees, itemized price disclosures including all taxes and fees, restrictions on selling tickets a reseller did not own or have under contract, a ban on ticket-purchasing software used to bypass online sales limits, and Attorney General authority to conduct audits, issue administrative penalties, and revoke or suspend reseller licenses.

The licensing, bonding, refund, software, audit, administrative-penalty, and license-revocation framework does not appear in the version Scott signed. Disclosure requirements and a speculative-ticket prohibition survived in narrower or modified form.

What the law actually does

Effective July 1, 2026:

A resale price cap of 110 percent of the original ticket price — a maximum markup of 10 percent — that applies, as written, where an event is held at an “independent venue” AND where one of three conditions is met: the venue seats 3,000 or fewer; it is a nonprofit venue that hosts agricultural fairs, exhibitions, or multiday community events in addition to live performances; or it is primarily used for collegiate or amateur sports. An “independent venue” is statutorily defined as one that derives a majority of its revenue (excluding charitable donations) from ticket events, is not majority-owned by a publicly traded company, and does not operate venues in more than 10 states. The cap does not apply where a reseller holds a written contract with the ticket issuer authorizing a higher price.

A set of disclosure requirements: ticket issuers must print the total original price on the face of every ticket; secondary ticket exchanges must tell customers when they are buying from a reseller rather than the issuer, and that resale prices are subject to the statutory cap; and if a secondary exchange provides information about the number or percentage of available tickets for an event, that information cannot mislead customers about availability on that platform or on other platforms.

A ban on deceptive URLs and unauthorized use of venue or artist intellectual property — including the use of words like “official” without express written consent. The ban applies to secondary ticket exchanges, resellers, and operators of websites that purport to sell or offer event tickets and link or redirect to a secondary exchange or reseller.

A prohibition on speculative ticket sales — selling or offering tickets the seller does not have in actual or constructive possession.

Violations are treated as unfair and deceptive acts in commerce under 9 V.S.A. § 2453, Vermont’s general consumer-protection statute. The statute defines a “reseller” as a business entity engaged in the sale or resale of tickets; individuals reselling tickets purchased for personal use are not covered by the term.

A drafting question worth flagging

As written, the price cap requires both an “independent venue” and one of three additional conditions. Two of those conditions — nonprofit venues hosting agricultural fairs and venues primarily used for collegiate or amateur sports — may describe categories of venues that do not always derive a majority of revenue from ticket events, the threshold required to qualify as an “independent venue” under the statute. A literal reading narrows the cap’s reach substantially; a reading that treats the conditions as alternatives broadens it. The General Assembly may need to clarify this before July 1, 2028, when the law sunsets.

The sunset

Section 2 of the act repeals the entire ticket-resale subchapter on July 1, 2028. Unless the legislature acts to extend or replace it, every provision above disappears two years and one day after taking effect.

Why it matters

The price cap is the headline provision, but its reach is bounded by who runs the venue, not by what the ticket costs. Tickets to events at venues that do not meet the law’s independent-venue test are not subject to the cap. Disclosure requirements and the deceptive-URL ban apply to the specific actors named in each provision; the speculative-ticket ban applies to any person.

The licensing and bonding framework the introduced bill proposed — which would have given the Attorney General audit authority and a license-revocation lever — is not in the law. Enforcement instead runs through Vermont’s existing consumer-protection statute.

The two-year sunset puts the question back to the General Assembly before two summer seasons of operation have produced much data on the law’s effects.