Texas state Sen. Judith Zaffirini has filed a new bill aimed at concert ticket scalpers who use automated software to snap up seats and resell them at inflated prices. Senate Bill 42 would empower the Texas attorney general to investigate bot-driven ticket buyers and hit violators with civil penalties of up to $10,000 per violation.
A Second Try at Curbing Bots
According to the San Antonio Current, Senate Bill 42 was filed by Zaffirini, who represents Laredo, and would target price-gouging in the concert ticket industry. The bill defines bots as software programs that perform automatic and repetitive tasks, and it would update definitions and references within the Texas Business & Commerce Code, per the same report. The legislation would also give the attorney general authority to investigate scalpers accused of using bots to buy up tickets beyond what's allowed for legitimate buyers.
This isn't Zaffirini's first run at the issue. She introduced a similar proposal in 2023, and Gov. Greg Abbott signed that measure, Senate Bill 1639, into law the same year. That law added Section 328.002 to the Texas Business and Commerce Code, which states plainly that “a person may not use or create a bot to: purchase tickets in excess of posted limits,” according to texas.public.law. The provision took effect September 1, 2023.
Eras Tour Fallout Still Echoes
The push for tougher bot rules traces back in part to the chaos surrounding Taylor Swift's Eras Tour ticket rollout, when fans struggled to compete with scalpers buying tickets en masse, per the San Antonio Current's reporting. At the time, the Texas Tribune reported that Senate Bill 1639 had been positively received by lawmakers and passed out of the Senate, with a companion proposal, House Bill 2444, also aiming to stop people from using technology to bypass ticketing-system security and allow civil penalties enforced by the attorney general.
A Live Nation representative testified in favor of the 2023 bill, telling lawmakers, “This bill takes a step forward during a time we're seeing more bot activity than ever,” the Tribune reported. Even so, the Tribune later noted that it was unclear how effective the Texas law would be in the short term — a caveat that lingers as lawmakers consider a fresh version of the policy.
An Uphill Climb in a GOP-Controlled Senate
Senate Bill 42 faces an uncertain future in the Texas Senate, which remains under Republican control, according to the San Antonio Current. The Texas Legislature's upcoming session starts January 12, 2027, giving Zaffirini's proposal time to work through committee before lawmakers convene.
Complicating any crackdown, the rise of AI agents and AI-powered software has made efforts to curtail automated ticket purchases more difficult, the outlet reported. Scalpers have increasingly leaned on more sophisticated tools to outpace both ticket sellers' security measures and the laws meant to stop them, a dynamic that has shaped both the 2023 statute and the new bill now before the Legislature.
