PHOENIX — Gov. Doug Ducey is defending his decision to tell state officials to stop enforcing a law forcing those who offer rides for money to meet the standards required for taxi drivers.
“I said I want to get our economy moving in the right direction,” Ducey said Thursday of his directive to the Department of Weights and Measures to stop citing drivers for rideshare services who are picking up passengers and transporting them for money.
“We believe that companies like Uber and Lyft are innovative, entrepreneurial technologies,” the governor said. “And I want to see those types of companies thrive.”
He also said they create jobs.
“The people that are taking that ‘app’ and are using that service and are creating an income for themselves, that’s something we want to see more of, not less of,” Ducey said.
The governor did not dispute the drivers may be operating illegally, in as much as the Department of Weights and Measures has been citing them for months for violating the laws that require taxi drivers to meet certain requirements for commercial insurance.
But Ducey just last week replaced the head of that agency with former House Speaker Andy Tobin. The governor said he worked with Tobin to “improve our economy.”
“And I’ll continue to make those decisions,” Ducey said.
Existing Arizona laws are built around a specific model of transportation for money, a model that involves taxis and limousines. Arizona requires operators of those vehicles to register with the state and meet certain requirements, including carrying at least $300,000 of insurance.
Uber and Lyft, by contrast, do not own or operate vehicles, but instead connect those seeking rides with individuals willing to use their own cars, trucks and vans.
Those wanting a ride sign on to a computer application which lays out the price, collects the fare and then forwards the request to a registered driver, who gets a percentage of the fare.
The drivers, operating their own vehicles, can carry only the state-required minimum coverage of $15,000 for injury to any one person, $30,000 for total injuries in any incident, and $10,000 worth of coverage for damage to another vehicle or property.
Legislation to provide a clear legal path for both companies to operate, including higher insurance requirements, was approved last year. But it was vetoed by then-Gov. Jan Brewer who said it failed to protect public safety.
Until Thursday’s order from Ducey, Weights and Measures had cited drivers for violating the laws governing rides for money.
Ducey said he recognizes the gap in the law. But the governor said he prefers to suspend enforcement of existing statutes to give legislators time to approve something else.
He countered a question of what happens in the interim, if a rideshare driver with minimal insurance injures someone by saying, “Well, we already have Uber and Lyft out there” and the citations were not changing that.
Ducey’s announcement that he was suspending enforcement comes just days before the Super Bowl. That timing is not coincidental.
“We want to make sure they continue to operate, particularly during the Super Bowl,” said Daniel Scarpinato, his press aide.
The 2014 legislation was pushed by lobbyists for Uber and Lyft in an effort to ensure the companies and their drivers were exempt from taxi and limousine regulations. It did include a requirement to follow certain rules and carry certain insurance.
Brewer vetoed the measure, saying it would have allowed rideshare companies to operate “without the fundamental safeguards necessary to protect passengers, drivers and the public.”
“It also would subject consumers to drivers who would not have been tested for drugs, unlike what is required for school bus, light rail, taxi and other public transportation drivers,” she wrote in her veto message.
Ducey gave no indication when new legislation might be ready.
In a prepared statement Thursday, Steve Thompson, Uber’s general manager for Arizona, pronounced his company “thrilled by Gov. Ducey’s decision.” Thompson said Uber is willing to work to craft “smart regulations” that alter state laws.
