The US state of Nevada passes 'Burning Man tax'

The US state of Nevada has approved a new tax on live entertainment, which includes a 9% charge on tickets for events such as the Burning Man festival and Electric Daisy Carnival.

The bill is set to come into effect later this year.

Burning Man, a week long event held in the Nevada desert, described it as "misguided".

The producers of the Electric Daisy Carnival, a music and light show, said it was "detrimental" to the industry.

"Burning Man is a non-profit organisation that spends more than $11m in Nevada, has vendor contracts with local businesses and is a strong supporter of arts around the state," its spokesperson said.

"Burning Man participants contribute more than $40m annually to the Nevada economy - they pay their fair share of sales and gas taxes, and they are tremendously supportive of local businesses," he added.

The law is set to affect next year's Burning Man ticket sales, most of which cost $390. The festival estimates it will cost them $2.8m. It is still considering whether or not to pass it on to consumers.

Jennifer Forkish, from Insomniac, the organisation that puts on the Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC), said the law was "extremely detrimental to our industry, one that generates hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue for local and state governments".

"Even though EDC will not be impacted this year, this tax increase could force us to operate at a loss in the future.