"Sorry, we're all sold out." Have you ever wondered why it's impossible to get the most desirable sports, concert and theater tickets? It's not because there are too many people waiting in lines to purchase them, it's due to the fact that there is an underground ticket distribution system in New York which diverts tickets away from you, the general public.

Consumers who try to get tickets to a desired event frequently discover that the tickets are no longer available just minutes after they go on sale. In fact, if there are any tickets, they are in undesirable locations in the venue.

The next question many ask is, how are there so many advertisements put in the next day's newspaper by brokers who are somehow holding and ready to sell the most wanted seats? This is where the corruption, I believe, comes into our ticket distribution system.

Ticket brokers, people holding the premium seats, have many methods to obtain the best tickets. Some of their methods are paying substantial amounts of money to people who have control over the tickets. One method is to use high-speed dialing equipment to increase their chance of getting through on the phone, and buying tickets from fans. This is why even the first person in line for tickets is still unlikely to get the most sought after seats.

Another thing that makes it harder for the public to get good tickets, or for that matter any tickets at all, is the large number of tickets, usually the best in the venue, which are kept away from the public. These large numbers of tickets are set aside for people who are connected with the event, but somehow always wind up in the hands of the ticket brokers. One more unfair practice is the failure of venues to inform the public about the number of tickets which will be available to them, as well as the location of these tickets.

This has become a very serious issue to many people as well as performers. Ticket brokers are making large amounts of money, by selling tickets obtained in ways that performers would not want practiced. In addition, they are preventing the true fan from going to an event by raising the ticket prices so high that an average family can't afford to purchase them. There have already been laws passed by New York State Legislature to try to put a stop to this underground system, however, it is very complex and thrives today.

As part of my efforts to strengthen consumer protection laws in our community, I'm collecting personal stories on scalping issues and ticket distribution. If you have information you'd like to share which could be used in preparation for state legislation, please write to my office at 925 Hempstead Turnpike, Franklin Square, NY 11010.

All testimonials will be kept confidential and be used only for gauging scalping and ticket price fixing statistics.