Concert and sports fans in Oregon get new rights against ticket scammers

Oregon gives ticket buyers new protections

Oregon’s Fan Fairness and Transparency Act took effect Jan. 1, 2026, giving concert and sports fans in the state new legal protections when buying tickets.

Known as House Bill 3167, the law bans software bots, fake look-alike websites, hidden fees, and a practice called speculative ticketing.

The bill had bipartisan support, sponsored by Rep. Pam Marsh, a Democrat from Ashland, along with Republican co-sponsors from Salem and Tillamook.

Bots buy tickets before fans even have a chance

Ticket bots are software programs that scoop up hundreds of tickets the moment they go on sale, far faster than any human can click.

They get around security checks like CAPTCHA by using fake accounts and hidden IP addresses. Scalpers then flip those tickets on secondary markets at markups that can hit 400% to 500% above face value.

Most regular fans either find nothing left or end up paying far more than the ticket was worth.

Oregon’s bot ban now has real teeth

HB 3167 bans any software built to bypass ticket sellers’ security controls or purchase limits. It also bans reselling any ticket that a bot bought in the first place.

Oregon had a limited bot ban before this law, but HB 3167 expands it significantly. Venues and ticket sellers must now report suspected bot activity to the Oregon Attorney General.

The new law closes gaps that let bots keep operating even under the old rules.

Fake ticket websites are now against the law

Some websites copy the look of official venue pages so closely that buyers cannot tell the difference.

They use the same logos, photos, and domain names to fool people into thinking they are buying directly from the venue.

Under HB 3167, only sellers acting on behalf of a venue, promoter, or performer can use that branding.

These fake sites often appear near the top of search results, and buyers on them may pay inflated prices without realizing they hit a third-party reseller.

Full price must show from the start

The law requires “all-in pricing,” which means ticket sellers must display the total cost, including all service charges and fees, from the very beginning of the buying process.

That full price must stay visible at every step, not just pop up at checkout. This targets what the industry calls “drip pricing,” where fees stack up at the last moment.

The requirement applies to any seller operating in Oregon, regardless of where that seller is based.

Sellers can’t list tickets they don’t have

HB 3167 bans speculative ticketing, a practice where resellers post tickets for sale before they actually have them.

To list a ticket now, a seller must either already have it in hand or hold a written contract to get it.

This practice showed up often on platforms like StubHub, where tickets for popular events would appear for sale long before the venue even started selling them.

Some fans who bought speculative tickets showed up at venues only to find their ticket was never real.

Breaking the law gets expensive fast

Violations of HB 3167 count as unlawful trade practices under Oregon law.

The Oregon Department of Justice can take violators to court, and judges can impose civil penalties of up to $25,000 per violation. Individual buyers who were harmed can also file their own lawsuits for damages.

Courts may order violators to pay restitution to affected consumers.

The Oregon Legislature enrolled the bill as Chapter 390 of the 2025 Oregon Laws after the governor signed it.

The bill passed with wide support

The Oregon House passed HB 3167 on April 21, 2025, by a vote of 40 to 16.

The Senate passed it on June 11, and the House repassed it on June 13 after the Senate made amendments. Gov. Tina Kotek signed it.

Supporters included local venues, arts organizations, and Oregon Consumer Justice. Rep. Marsh said constituents who had been scammed by deceptive ticket sellers pushed her to act.

The federal government is pushing back too

The federal BOTS Act of 2016 made it illegal to use bots to bypass ticket purchase limits, but enforcement was rare.

The Federal Trade Commission acted only once in eight years, in 2021, hitting three New York ticket brokers with about $3.7 million in penalties after the FTC brought its first-ever cases under the BOTS Act.

On March 31, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order directing the FTC to enforce the BOTS Act more aggressively and calling for greater price transparency across the live entertainment market.

The FTC sued Ticketmaster in 2025

In September 2025, the FTC and seven states filed a lawsuit against Live Nation and Ticketmaster.

The suit alleged the companies hid mandatory fees until checkout and knowingly let brokers exploit weaknesses in their system.

The states that joined included Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Nebraska, Tennessee, Utah, and Virginia. It was the most aggressive federal action yet against the dominant ticketing platform.

More than 20 states are joining the fight

Oregon is part of a wave of more than 20 states that have introduced or passed ticket consumer protection laws. Michigan signed a bot ban in December 2025.

Arizona passed its own bot ban in 2024, which got nicknamed the “Taylor Swift bill” after widespread bot abuse during her Eras Tour ticket sales.

At the federal level, bipartisan legislation called the MAIN Event Ticketing Act was introduced in 2025 to build on the existing BOTS Act.

What Oregon fans should do now

As of Jan. 1, 2026, every ticket seller operating in Oregon must show the full price upfront. If you think a seller broke the law, you can file a complaint with the Oregon Department of Justice.

You may also have the right to sue for damages under Oregon’s Unlawful Trade Practices Act. The law covers any entertainment event held in Oregon, no matter where the seller is located.

Oregon lawmakers introduced HB 4024 in the 2026 session to push the protections even further.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

Read more from this brand:

• How Oregon’s Otter Point Lost Its Otters—And These Tribes Are Bringing Them Back
• The Cuban Missile Crisis tapes sat secret for years. Now you can hear them.
• The ancient tribe that witnessed Crater Lake form 7,700 years ago