On Monday, Nevada lawmakers gave preliminary approval to rules for ride-sharing companies like Uber and Lyft.
The Legislative Committee green lit the regulations proposed last week by the Transportation Authority.
The rules outline details for how the companies will be allowed to operate in the state. According to Rick Velotta, transportation reporter for the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the rules are different from those governing cab companies.
"They really don't address a lot of the areas that taxi companies have to adhere to," he said.
The approved regulations include how much in fees transportation network companies will have to pay, who will be investigating cars, and who will be conducting background checks on drivers.
Velotta said the taxi industry tried to insert some of its ideas into the process, like stricter pre-application checks for drivers and cars, but he believes they were getting a "deaf ear from some of the regulators."
The regulations put together by the authority are really a collection of different rules used by cities that have dealt with the companies in the past, Velotta said.
In a story in the Review-Journal, Velotta wrote that the taxi authority believes the ride-sharing will be a disaster for taxi companies.
He believes it is a polarizing issue because on one side the ride-sharing companies offer an alternative not seen in Southern Nevada before, and on the other, are the people who believe it will hurt an important industry.
"It kind of depends on where you're coming from in terms of whether you believe that you're going to be safer in a taxi or in an Uber car," Velotta said.
The decision Monday leaves just one more hurdle for the companies to overcome before they can roll in Nevada. It is now up to the Nevada Transportation Authority to adopt the regulations.
A hearing is set for Sept. 11.
Rick Velotta, transportation reporter, Las Vegas Review-Journal
