After a city resident used a forgotten 1948 anti-scalping law to successfully sue Ticketmaster for imposing charging more than 50 cents above face value, the city council scrambled to provide immediate relief to Ticketmaster at the behest of the Ravens, the Orioles, and several entertainment venues around the city.
Now the same councilman who introduced that emergency legislation, Carl Stokes, has put forward a bill that would limit “convenience” fees to 15 percent for the first $50 of face value. For higher price tickets, no more than 10 percent could be charged for the second $50, and any amount higher than that can only be surcharged at 5 percent.
For example, a $150 ticket could come with no more than a $15 surcharge.
In addition, the bill would require Ticketmaster and other ticket sellers “to disclose such fees in their advertising in Baltimore.”
Sounds good, everybody.
