Assembly Standing Committee on Arts, Entertainment, Sports, and Tourism

I want to say good morning. Buenos Dias. Welcome to each and every one of you. We have yet to establish a quorum, but for your reading, I am calling this hearing to order on the Committee on Arts, Entertainment and Tourism. Before we start, I want to go over a few housekeeping items. We will only be accepting in-person testimony and witnesses in support.

In opposition, the bills being presented will have a maximum of two minutes for the primary witness in support and two minutes for the witness in opposition. Primary witness in opposition. Each witness will have again two minutes after we have heard from the primary witness. Members of the public will also have an opportunity to speak. I will ask that you to please state your name, your organization that you represent, and your position on the Bill.

No commentary, just that forward additional comments will be ruled out of order. Anyone acting inappropriately or disrespectful respectfully towards the participants here in this hearing room will be asked to leave. The Committee will also accept written testimony through the position letter portal on the Committee's website. So we invite you to want to make sure you weigh in on any items to please take advantage of your written testimonies on the position letter porthole there for your convenience. You can find it on the website.

One final note is that SB 829 has been pulled from the Committee at the request of the author. With that being said, we see our first presenter. She's here presenting on item number one. And we will ask all Members that are on this Committee to please report to room 444 so we can begin. We see another Member. We will start and begin as a Subcommitee at this particular point in time. Misses Davis, as you please approach. Madam Secretary will ask, do you see a quorum present?

Okay, there's no quorum present at the present time. Miss Davies, we will give you an opportunity to start on file item number one. We will act as a Subcommitee, and when we have a full quorum, we'll be taking this item up and you will be presenting Assembly Bill 1966. So when ready, please proceed.

Thank you, Mister chair Members. Today I'm here to present AB 1966. I first want to thank Committee staff for working with my staff and stakeholders on this measure. Current law requires certain types of businesses and transportation locations to place human trafficking resource posters on their premises. These posters include the names and numbers of organizations someone can call to report a tip on a suspicious case or call for resources on how to escape if they are a victim themselves.

AB 1966 is a common sense measure to build on this law and now enact a digital version of this law. For when someone buys a ticket for a large sporting or musical event. The Bill will require that whenever a ticket is purchased with electronic receipt, you get in your email. The digital ticket would also include a notice about resources available in the state for human trafficking victims.

While there's no direct correlation between large events and human trafficking occurrences, there are cases where law enforcement has seen an increase in suspected activity in 2023 in relationships to the Super bowl hosted in Arizona, it was reported that Phoenix law enforcement agencies arrested more than 350 people in connection with human trafficking and sex crimes. 120 of these arrests were for alleged sex buyers.

With California set to host major sporting events, including the 2027 Super Bowl and the 2028 Summer Olympics, it is never too soon to prepare ourselves with laws in place to protect potential victims. With me here today to testify is Tamar Foster, who is the Deputy Executive Director of the Little Hoover Commission, who has done great work and reports on ways California can improve are human trafficking laws. AB 1966 has no opposition and I respectfully ask for an aye vote.

Thank you very much. You may proceed. You have two minutes.

Thank you, Mister chair and Members, I'm deputy Executive Director of the Little Hoover Commission. The Commission is an independent, bipartisan oversight agency charged with investigating state operations and making recommendations to improve the efficiency, economy and improved service for state government. So back in 2020, the Commission issued a series of three reports on labor trafficking. My remarks today will focus on the second of those reports, titled Labor Strategies to uncover this hidden crime.

In our study, the Commission found that labor trafficking is present in a number of industries and sectors in our state. Yet efforts to eradicate this crime inevitably must begin with effective detection, that is, finding it wherever and whenever it occurs. But this is a daunting task, particularly because many Members of the public lack the knowledge to recognize the signs. And to the unsuspecting observer, the work itself may sometimes appear legitimate.

Broadly increasing public awareness of labor trafficking is one way to help improve both victim identification and crime prevention. The Commission recommended the state promote efforts that alert the public to the existence of human trafficking in all of its that is, for sex and labor. By requiring ticket sellers to notice the public about all forms of human trafficking, this Bill would help raise awareness of the crime and the resources available to help its victims. For these reasons, we respectfully request your support. Thank you.

Thank you very much. I want to pause for a moment and ask the secretary, please call the roll to establish a quorum.

[Roll Call]

A quorum has been established. Thank you very much for your testimony. Witness and opposition. There's no witness. Opposition on file. Any witnesses and support wants to come to the microphone. The microphone is there for you to register your aye vote seeing none. Opposition no vote hearing none. Thank you very much. First of all, I want to say thank you very much to Miss Davies for bringing this good, sensible legislation before us.

Assembly Bill 1966 with major events being hosted in California with the next few years, including 2026, World Cup, 2027, the Super Bowl, 2028, the Olympic Games. I just want to thank the author again for bringing this issue before us. I think that this is a timely and perfect time to receive this information. And the phone numbers are important regarding the human trafficking and the line for individuals to respect human trafficking, getting that information in people's hands so that they will attend.

Because again, these events for entertainment and sports, we want to make sure that we keep these individuals safe to enjoy these events. As the chair of this Committee, I am supportive in any steps can be taken to improve the experience and also the safety experience when individuals come from all over the world. Coming to California, are you considering any amendments this Bill that will point to tickets sold or on the secondary market?

Actually, right now our office is currently looking at options to see if there's a need to include secondary sellers in the Bill as well as to ensure every person to get a ticket regardless of where it comes from and it's included.

Great. Let me bring it back to the Committee. Any Members wishing to ask any questions of the author, move the Bill second. Fantastic. Would you like to have any final words to close?

Thank you. And I respectfully ask for an aye vote.

Thank you very much, Madam Chair. Please call the roll.

[Roll Call]

Thank you very much. We're going to hold the roll open for absent Members. Thank you very much for your presentation. We'll ask the sergeants to reach out to the public safety chair who's chairing the meeting and ask him if he can come down and present his Bill. Thank you. It's my error. That motion was do pass. We'll keep the roll open and that Bill will be headed for Committee on a third reading. Thank you. Thank you very much.

Please present Mr. McCarty on file item number two, Assembly Bill 2203. Ticket sellers, electronic tickets. So please proceed when ready.

Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I know this is a hot topic and you had an informational hearing on this. This is a piece of the puzzle of several lawmakers in the Senate and Assembly are looking to look at this issue of ticket pricing and helping consumers while protecting venues and artists. Making sure that people who try to purchase tickets to go to a sporting event, a concert, are taken care of.

They're spending their hard earned money, sometimes flying across the country, and we want to make sure that their wishes are respected and we take care of consumers. So this helps. One piece of the puzzle cracks down on the predatory ticket resellers on the secondary market by preventing them from selling the same ticket across multiple platforms. Some people sell a ticket on Stubhub and also Seatgeek or Vivint, and they're looking at prices.

And so maybe they have an offer out there and get you to lock in, but they don't deliver it because they're trying to sell it over here for more money. So some of us in the Legislature experienced this firsthand. There was high profile examples of a Bay Area family that flew to Los Angeles to try to attempt to see the Taylor Swift show last summer and were turned away the day of the show.

This is after paying for flights, hotels, and so forth. And so they really, you know, were left with nothing. And so we want to make sure we rectify situations like this and provide increased consumer protections. And we did work with your Committee staff, and we will be accepting the Committee amendments, so thank you very much. This will also help smaller venues as well. And with me today is one of the smaller venues here in Sacramento.

John Gunton, the general manager of the newly announced Channel 24 venue right here in Midtown Sacramento and a member of the National Independent Venues Association.

Thank you very much. You have two minutes to present.

Thank you. My name is John Gunton. I'm here on behalf of the National Independent Venue Association. As Assembly Member McCarty mentioned, we represent over 500 independently owned and operated music venues and music festival promoters throughout California. We're here in support of AB 2203 by Assembly Member McCarty. I'm also the general manager of the independent in San Francisco, which is a 500 cap room.

And I will, as he mentioned, will take over the role as the GM of the newly announced channel 24 being built in Midtown, which is a 2200 person cap room. Both of these venues are developed by independent, locally owned and operated full service concert production company that's based out of the Bay Area, Another Planet Entertainment. This is owned by two private individuals. And we are an independent promoter and venue operator.

Independent music venues are struggling across California in a large part due to overwhelming amount of fraud in the secondary ticket seller marketplace. Oftentimes, ticket resellers will sell the same tickets to multiple people, which is not only a fraudulent practice that negatively affects the consumer, it also leaves our venues to deal with the negative impacts. As venues, we're the first responders and also the providers of the benefit of the bargain of the ticket.

We sell the tickets, we man the box office, we handle the rope lines, we book and promote the shows. We provide all the logistics necessary for artists on our stage to put on the show. We're involved in every aspect, including having to speak to guests who may have traveled a long distance, who might have bought a fake ticket or were sold the same ticket by a different individual used to enter the venue. My fellow operators and I face multiple fake tickets at every show.

It's truly a concerning dynamic and undermines confidence and faith in our ability to put on shows. When fans opt not to buy tickets, when they are unable to tell the difference between a primary ticket seller and a secondary seller because it is not disclosed, or because they may not show up to our doors only to be told that somebody else has the same barcode.

AB 2203 takes important steps towards addressing the issues, those issues by making it a crime for a ticket seller to sell the same ticket to more than one person on a secondary market. For these reasons, we are proud to support the measure and look forward to being a resource to the Legislature as it grapples with how to best protect consumers and our small businesses in this space.

Thank you very much. Those in support, please approach the microphone. Please state your name, organization, and your position. You may begin.

Good morning, Jamie Minor. On behalf of StubHub, we do everything we can to prevent these issues from happening, and we appreciate the bill and please do support. Thank you.

Thank you.

Mr. Chair, Members. Alex Torres here on behalf of Jim Cornette, who is the President of Neva California, also the Executive Director of the California Capital Venues Coalition, representing brick and mortar venues in the Sacramento area, couldn't be here today, but wanted to express support. Thank you.

Thank you very much. We have no items on file in opposition. Anyone from the audience would like to speak in opposition? Please approach the microphone. Hearing and seeing none, bring it back to the Committee. Any Members? Any Members wishing to speak on this item?

I have a question.

Please, Mister Lackey.

Yeah. My only question is, who is to enforce this particular statute? Is there any consideration on the enforcement of this measure?

Yeah, that is an outstanding issue that we're looking at. Would be in the business and professions code. And it's something that we are exploring as we move this bill through the process.

Okay. Thank you.

Any other Member wishing to have comments? I just want to acknowledge the amendments that the author has worked on to tighten this bill by removing the language stating that the bill will only impact people with the intent to cancel all but one of the sales before the date of the event they purchase the ticket for. I definitely don't want to see anyone misuse this, especially on different multiple platforms reselling tickets and also disenfranchising individuals. So with that, I will entertain a most.

This item is do pass as amended. It's been properly moved. And second. Madam Secretary, please call. Oh, excuse me, Mr. McCarty, would you like to have closing remarks?

No. Thank you. Thank you for my close and appreciate your consideration asking for your aye vote.

Thank you. I'll be asking for the same consideration when I come to your Committee in a few moments. Thank you. Madam Secretary, please call the roll.

Motion is do pass, as amended, to Privacy and Consumer Protection. [Roll Call]

Thank you.

We'll keep the roll open for absent members. Thank you very much. Members who are assigned to the Arts, Entertainment and Tourism Committee, if you could please come and add on, we'll keep the roll open for the next 10 minutes. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much. Miss McKenna has returned. Madam Secretary. Would you please call a roll? Thank you very much. Okay. Thank you very much. We just been notified one of our Members will not be able to make it. Madam Secretary, if you can please record the vote.

That Bill is out 6-0. AB 1966 is 6-0. That Bill is out.

Thank you very much. The Arts, Entertainment, Sports, and Tourism Committee is adjourned.