Councilors at Metro, the regional government, will decide next month whether to back a bill in the Oregon Legislature that would ban companies and individuals from listing event tickets for sale that they don’t have in their possession.

So-called speculative ticketers bet they can sell tickets they don’t yet own, then purchase the tickets at lower prices from box offices and pocket the difference.

The Metro Council’s blessing matters here because it manages Portland’5 Centers for the Arts, operator of the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, Keller Auditorium and three other venues. “It is not uncommon to find tickets to Portland’5 events for sale on secondary marketplaces before the official on-sale date,” Metro legislative affairs manager Anneliese Koehler wrote to the Metro Council.

A case

See Full Page