Over the next few months, decisions at the state Legislature around rideshare could go beyond setting minimum rates for drivers. Already, some legislators are debating whether or not the state’s local governments should have the power to regulate transportation networks at all.
Eyes were on Minneapolis City Council Thursday as council voted to delay the implementation of its minimum rates rideshare ordinance, but interest in the future implications of this ordinance extend beyond the city. A working group led by House Majority Leader Jamie Long and Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy is working on a statewide solution that doesn’t preempt the Minneapolis City Council’s action. Council leaders are part of that effort.
Long said Thursday that the state bill is getting “very close” and he was grateful that Minneapolis City Council extended its ordinance implementation date.
“We have a lot of stakeholders in that conversation – the city, the Legislature, the governor, companies – so these are certainly discussions that can take time. I think having until the end of session instead of a May 1 deadline will be helpful,” Long said.
Gov. Tim Walz called the delay “good news.”
“There’s nothing wrong with saying, ‘Look, we can step back,’” Walz said. “Maybe there’s some things we didn’t think about here, maybe there are some things we can collaborate together on.”
Walz added that May 1st was “simply not doable” and the delay gives the Legislature time to make the regulation “a little more uniform.”
But some lawmakers are looking for more concrete assurance that Uber and Lyft will not leave. Hours after council’s vote, DFL legislators fended off a Thursday attempt by GOP lawmakers to block local governments from regulating rideshare companies.
What happened in the Senate
During the state Senate session yesterday, a motion was made by Sen. Zach Duckworth, R-Lakeville, to retroactively remove local authority to regulate rideshare. The amendment would have been added to House file 3436, an omnibus transportation bill, but ultimately Senate democrats voted that this amendment was non germane to the bill.
A non germane amendment includes one which relates to a substantially different subject or is intended to accomplish a substantially different purpose than that of the original bill to which it is proposed.
Sens. Scott Dibble, DFL-Minneapolis, and Matt Klein, DFL-Mendota Heights, argued the amendment would not be appropriate for the transportation bill because it directly impacts the powers of local government, which they argued should be addressed by the State and Local Government Committee.
“The bill seeks to preempt ordinances of local government. These are discussions of extreme and serious policy consequence,” Dibble said.
Duckworth, along with other GOP senators, argued the amendment was germane.
“This amendment is germane to the transportation policy bill as it impacts the transportation services of the entire state of Minnesota,” Duckworth said.
The senate voted 34 to 31 to uphold that the amendment was non germane.
Preemption
If the GOP amendment to the omnibus transportation bill had been adopted Thursday and the bill passed and signed, it would have qualified as a state preemption. Preemption is a legal doctrine that allows upper levels of government to restrict or prevent a lower-level government from self-regulating.
House Majority Leader Long, DFL-Minneapolis, one of lead negotiators working with the state House, Senate and governor on a rideshare bill, talked briefly about preemption in a discussion with reporters earlier that day.
“I think that we will get to a result that’s going to keep the company’s operating and it’s going to protect the drivers,” Long said. “I’m really hoping that we can avoid preemption. I personally oppose preemption. I have for years. It’s been a tool that’s been tried in the US in the past to stop cities from often being the engines of democracy … So I would really prefer we don’t go down that path.”
Minneapolis City Council delays ordinance
Earlier on Thursday, Minneapolis council voted unanimously to delay implementation of its minimum rates rideshare ordinance, which would require companies to pay $1.40 per mile and $0.51 per minute to drivers.
Uber and Lyft have claimed these rates are too high and threatened to leave if enforced. Now the enforcement date has been extended from May 1 to July 1, the companies say they will remain in the city for an additional two months, forgoing a planned May 1 departure.
Amid discussion around the ordinance to delay, work in progress with the state was one reason council members had for pushing the implementation date.
Before the council’s vote, Aurin Chowdhury, chair of the Intergovernmental Relations Committee, said the extension provides time for local approval for special state legislation.
“I’ve been talking consistently with state legislative leaders on their respective legislative process, and they have yet to decide on key components of their bill and are really looking to us to work on our side and complete our policy as they’re completing their bill,” she said. “They’re asking that there is time for us to collaborate together (and) move through our respective processes.”
Four local rideshare companies, which include one co-op, are in the process of completing applications and getting licensed, Chowdhury said, noting this process takes time.
Council members cited the time needed for these companies looking to serve as an Uber and Lyft alternative to build and establish themselves. Additionally, this would give more time for the more than 10,000 rideshare drivers in the Twin Cities metro to sign secure employment outside of Uber and Lyft.
However, some council members were skeptical that these startups could establish enough of a footing in two months to compensate for Uber and Lyft’s departure.
Two additional ordinances were proposed at the meeting. Ward 13 Council Member Linea Palmisano proposed eliminating the rideshare ordinance passed by council in March altogether. This motion failed 3 to 10.
Council Members Andrea Jenkins, Ward 8, and Emily Koski, Ward 11, brought another proposed motion to the board to lower the per-mile rate of the ordinance council passed in March from $1.40 to $1.21 per mile, which is the rate recommended in the state report. This would have maintained the same $0.51 per minute rate in the Minneapolis ordinance, which is higher than the state’s recommended $0.49 per minute. This motion also failed 3 to 10.
The issue of data
Much of the debate around what rates are sufficient to reach minimum wage for workers revolves around what study should be used to determine said rates.
Minneapolis City Council passed the rideshare ordinance a day before the state study that included recommended rates was released. The minimum wage rates council used in its ordinance are based off of 2019 Seattle rideshare drivers earnings.
This has been a continual point of contention brought up by Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, who vetoed council’s March ordinance but was ultimately overridden by a council.
The mayor plans to let council’s extension to July 1 pass, but plans to neither veto or sign it.
“A delay is not a fix,” Frey said in a statement. “While Council continues to make a mess of this, I’ll be working with policymakers and partners from across the disability, hospitality, and business communities to find a path forward for drivers and riders.”
Correction: this story has been updated to correct when the council first adopted the ordinance. It was the day before state study release, not the day after.
MinnPost reporter Peter Callaghan assisted with the reporting of this article.
Winter Keefer
Winter Keefer is MinnPost’s Metro reporter. Follow her on Twitter or email her at wkeefer@minnpost.com.
