Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Cabbies protest bills that would allow ride-share services

Ride-share Protests

Michelle Rindels / AP

Demonstrators protest against ride-hailing company Uber in Carson City on Monday, March 30, 2015.

Click to enlarge photo

People outside the state Senate building in Carson City on Monday, March 30, 2015, protest bills that would allow ride-share companies like Uber to operate in Nevada.

CARSON CITY — Cab drivers and public-safety advocates gathered outside the state capitol and the Grant Sawyer State Office in Las Vegas today to protest proposed legislation to legalize ride-share services like Uber.

The protests dovetailed with the hearing of two bills, SB439 and SB440, that would set guidelines for companies using smartphone applications to connect passengers with ride services.

Two years ago, ride-share services didn’t exist. Uber now operates in 160 cities and has been looking at the Nevada market since late last year. It briefly operated in Nevada until November, when a court ordered Uber to cease operations, citing issues with the company’s hiring process and lack of state certifications.

At today’s protests, people waved signs and cabs drove by honking as lawmakers in the Senate Labor, Commerce and Energy Committee conducted a hearing on the bills.

David Hargrove, a manager with the Reno-Sparks Cab Co., said operations such as Uber “would be unregulated taxi companies with a tremendous advantage over cab drivers.”

Taxi drivers say ride-share services — popular with passengers for their convenience and cost — are trying to skirt laws and fees.

If the bills pass, companies like Uber would not be defined as transportation companies. And drivers would be considered independent contractors, subject to regulation by the Public Utilities Commission.

The legislation would require ride-share services to have commercial liability insurance policies to cover their drivers.

Cab drivers, meanwhile, are regulated by the state’s Transportation Authority and Department of Transportation and are covered by a general liability insurance policy.

Cab drivers must pass state background checks, Department of Transportation-administered health exams and pay state and local fees.

Uber drivers, meanwhile, essentially need a car and smartphone to operate, if they pass the company’s third-party criminal background check. Drivers and public safety advocates have criticized Uber’s background-check policy.

Uber also does not provide health insurance or worker’s compensation to its drivers. “That’s in my mind as a roadblock,” Sen. Patricia Farley, R-Las Vegas, said.

Uber says it is not in the position to provide full-time benefits. “The unique nature of [the business model] is that these are part-time individuals,” said Steve Thompson, general manager of Uber Nevada.

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