After months of trying to craft regulations to satisfy both the taxicab industry and the operators of Transportation Network Companies and arriving at a satisfactory way to regulate Uber and Lyft, a measure approved by the Texas House last night will strip the City of San Antonio of its right to regulate TNCs, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.
H.B. 100 would implement statewide regulations for the firms, and tack on a $5,000 fee.
State Rep Chris Paddie (R-Center) says rather than have a complex web of different sorts of regulations affecting each individual city, statewide regulation is the only way to handle this emerging industry.
"Statewide regulations for TNC has become the best practice throughout the country," he said. "When I first started working on this issue last year, there were only two states that had statewide regulations. Today there are 43, because Florida just passed this law this morning."
Paddie's bill would require an annual criminal background check for TNC drivers, but not the 'ten point fingerprinting' that the TNC's oppose.
"This patchwork of ordinances demonstrates the need for a statewide regulatory framework which first and foremost works to insure customer safety," Paddie said.
The Freedom Caucus, which represents fiscally conservative House members, attempted to scuttle the bill, saying no regulation is the best regulation for emerging industries.
In addition to the patchwork of regulations from city to city, supports of the bill were concerned that existing legacy cab and limo companies may have too much political sway over the actions of city councils.
The measure, which is expected to pass the Senate, will resolve problems like have emerged in Austin, where an inability to agree on effective regulation has left the capital city without either Uber or Lyft, causing problems during last months' South by Southwest Festival.