WASHINGTON -- Ever wonder why you can't buy a ticket for a decent price to a big concert?

Does it make you so mad you'd wish Congress would launch an investigation?

Well, two of Jersey's congressmen also wondered. And, being congressmen and all, they requested that Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress, take a hard look.

The results are in. Here are five reasons why the deck is stacked against you.

1. There may not be that many tickets for sale.

As many as 65 percent of the tickets to concerts of major artists could be withheld from general sales, earmarked instead for customers of a credit card who is sponsoring the performance and/or for members of the performer's fan club.

2. Ticket brokers are quicker than you.

The GAO said that brokers can use staff members and software to buy up available tickets before the general public can get its hands on them. That means fans are relegated to buying tickets on the secondary market at a higher cost.

3. Fees, fees and more fees.

Service fees, processing fees, facility fees and delivery fees increase the average price of a ticket by more than one-fourth on the primary market, and even more on the secondary market.

4. If there are cheaper tickets, you can't find them.

Internet searches are rigged so that so-called white label websites, which offer tickets at higher prices, used paid advertising so they often appear at the top of results.

In some cases, the websites are designed to fool customers into thinking they were buying the tickets directly from a concert venue, not a third-party site.

5. There is little competition.

Ticketmaster dominates the primary market as well as being a major player in the business of reselling tickets as well. Stubhub holds 50 percent of the secondary market.

"A small number of companies conducts the majority of event ticket sales," the GAO report said.

Carrie Davis, a spokeswoman for Live Nation Entertainment, the parent company of Ticketmaster, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

"All too often fans cannot get tickets at face value or at all because the deck has been stacked against them in favor of professional ticket brokers, illegal ticket bots, and unscrupulous resellers," said Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., D-6th Dist., who requested the report with Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr., D-9th Dist.

Pascrell is the lead sponsor of the Better Oversight of Secondary Sales and Accountability in Concert Ticketing, or BOSS ACT, named for Bruce Springsteen. Pallone helped secure a hearing before the House Energy and Commerce Committee, where he the top Democrat.

Both lawmakers said the report called out for federal regulation of the industry, both by Congress and the Federal Trade Commission.

"This industry is a multibillion-dollar wild west with no regulation and no transparency," Pascrell said. "Congress must step in to impose true oversight on an industry that makes its way ripping off customers and end rampant speculation on the secondary marketplace that skyrockets prices."

Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JDSalant or on Facebook. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.