On Sept. 25, 2023, Gov. Phil Murphy signed into law S-2902 (P.L.2023, c.161), which revises statutory requirements enacted in 2007 for ticket prices at postseason interscholastic athletic events. The newly signed law essentially prohibits associations that oversee statewide interscholastic sports from increasing ticket prices for playoff games compared to regular season games, unless the increased prices are required to offset event-related expenses including, but not limited to, rental, staffing, security, or insurance costs. In addition, the law provides that:
- For playoff games that are held at a public school, any such adult ticket price increase is limited to 300% of the cost of a regular season adult ticket charged for a comparable event at the same school district.
- The athletic association must offer discounted prices on student tickets for playoff games due to economic hardship, as determined by the student’s school principal.
- The athletic association may provide discounted ticket prices for other groups as deemed necessary by the association, in consultation with the school district where the playoff game is held.
- The association must file playoff game ticket prices with the New Jersey Department of Education at least 60 days before the scheduled playoff game, although the association would be able to subsequently file adjusted playoff game ticket prices with the commissioner no later than 30 days prior to the scheduled playoff game.
The measure went into effect immediately upon the governor’s signature.
