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But some art market experts said they were concerned that the city had gone too far. The industry-specific regulations, installed in response to several scandals and the explosive growth of the art industry, have already sunsetted.Ĭity officials defended the elimination of the rules as useful streamlining that will work to improve New York’s business climate. Representatives of several auction houses said they had been surprised by the wholesale elimination of the rules and had only learned in recent days of the changes, which were authorized by City Council legislation last year.Īs set by the new law, auctioneers will no longer need to be licensed as of June 15. The regulations had been enacted over decades to increase oversight of an art industry long viewed as opaque - with buyers and sellers often shielded from public view - and chiefly required that certain information was disclosed, such as whether an auction house had a financial stake in a work up for sale. New York City has eliminated the regulations it had tailored to govern the auction industry, an abrupt reversal in policy that is part of a sweeping effort to improve conditions for businesses after the economic damage brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.Ĭonceived to help small businesses by cutting red tape and reducing penalties, the changes will also have the effect of easing restrictions on major companies like Sotheby’s and Christie’s, which sell billions of dollars of art and other items each year.
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