Gov. Jared Polis on Wednesday signed a new law at the Red Rocks Amphitheater, saying it will help protect concertgoers and other entertainment enthusiasts from ticket scam sales.

The amphitheater is one of Colorado’s most prominent concert venues. 

House Bill 1378, which supporters called called “the most pro-consumer ticketing law in the country,” requires ticket sellers to guarantee consumer refunds under certain circumstances, such as if an event is canceled. It also prohibits a venue from denying entry to individuals who purchased their tickets from a reseller, which has happened in the past due to concerns over the authenticity of resold tickets.

The bill amends the state’s consumer protection statutes to expand upon actions that constitute deceptive trade practices. These include creating websites designed to look like legitimate ticket sales sites with the intent of misleading consumers, selling a ticket without disclosing its total cost, and increasing the price of a ticket once it has been selected for purchase.

A similar bill that passed last year was vetoed by Polis, but HB 1378’s sponsors said the current incarnation takes a more consumer-oriented approach. 

“We’ve worked in good faith with all of the folks on all sides of this issue to try to get to a good set of ground rules,” said Rep. William Lindstedt, D-Broomfield, one of the bill’s sponsors. “I think these are all things that everyone can agree to make buying tickets in this state just a little bit better for consumers.”

The bill marks the first update to Colorado’s ticketing statutes since 2008. 

Tim Supplitt of the Denver New Liberals, a supporter of the bill, emphasized the importance of this kind of legislation at a state level, since there is no similar measure at the federal level.

“Live Nation-Ticketmaster is a monopoly,” Supplitt said. “Absent of the Department of Justice or FTC bringing forward a case to break up the company (which may be on the horizon), we believe that states should be pursuing legislation to curb their anti-consumer practices, and when we heard that Reps. Lindstedt and Valdez were interested in this, we were happy to get involved.”

Earlier this month, Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser joined 30 other state and district attorneys general in filing an antitrust lawsuit against Ticketmaster and its parent company, Live Nation. 

The company caused outrage among Taylor Swift fans in late 2022 when its site crashed during a presale event for her tour, inciting congressional hearings and consumer protection bills across the nation. 

“Taylor’s worldwide Eras Tour opened many people’s eyes to the Bad Blood between Coloradans and Hoax ticketing scams,” said Polis. “This bill protects concert-goers from a Labyrinth of hidden fees and helps ensure Coloradans don’t have another Cruel Summer filled with fraudulent tickets. Today, Coloradans are closer than ever to being Out of the Woods from scams.”

In addition to Lindstedt, the bill was sponsored by Rep. Alex Valdez, D-Denver, and Sens. Tom Sullivan, D-Thornton, and Bob Gardner, R-Colorado Springs.