State-Imposed Fee on Pro Sports Tickets to Begin on July 1

Oklahoma City -- A state-imposed fee on tickets to professional sporting events goes into effect on July 1, 2017, adding $1 to the price of each ticket.
Earlier this spring, the legislature passed House Bill 2361 as one measure to help the state deal with this shortfall. House Bill 2361 creates a fee on all tickets sold to professional sporting events.

Beginning on July 1 of this year, a $1 fee will be assessed to professional sports tickets that are priced at less than $50, while a fee of $2 will be assessed to tickets that are $50 or more. These fees will be collected from all professional sports teams that operate in the state of Oklahoma, including the Oklahoma City Dodgers, Oklahoma City Thunder, OKC Energy FC, Tulsa Roughnecks, Tulsa Oilers and Tulsa Drillers.
All monies collected from this fee will be paid by the teams to the Oklahoma Tax Commission to be deposited into the General Revenue Fund to help deal with the budget crisis. It is projected that this fee will generate $2.6 million per year that will go toward reducing the state's $878 million budget shortfall.
What does this fee mean for fans?  In short, this new fee means all Oklahoma City Dodgers ticket prices will increase by $1 each beginning on July 1. It will apply to all individual game tickets that are purchased for the remainder of the season.
Will it affect Season Tickets? This new fee will not affect season tickets that have already been purchased for the 2017 season. Any season tickets purchased after July 1, 2017 will have the ticket fee assessed.
Will it affect Group Tickets? This new fee will not affect group outings that have already been purchased for the 2017 season. Any group tickets purchased after July 1, 2017 will have the ticket fee assessed.
Why is this tax fee being added in the middle of the season? The state of Oklahoma's budget begins on July 1, 2017. This new fee is one way that is being implemented to help the state recover from its projected revenue shortfall. In this critical situation, legislators felt it was necessary to implement the fee as soon as possible.
Can I buy tickets before the tax fee goes into effect? Yes, any individual game tickets, group tickets or ticket plans purchased for future games will not be assessed the fee if purchased prior to July 1, 2017.
Fans or season ticket holders who have questions about this newly mandated fee can contact the OKC Dodgers at 405-218-1000 or email [email protected].