Ride-Hailing, Home-Sharing Ordinances Pass Chicago City Council
(CBS/AP) --Chicago aldermen on Wednesday approved less restrictive regulations on ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft after the member who crafted the rules dropped an insistence on fingerprint background checks.
The City Council also passed a less controversial measure to control home-sharing services such as Airbnb.
The City Council passed the ride-hailing measure 36-12 after months of debate and intense lobbying against tougher restrictions on the companies, which created smartphone apps allowing people to get rides at the push of a button.
Ward 9 Ald. Anthony Beale's original proposal would have required drivers to be fingerprinted as part of a criminal background check, just like traditional taxi drivers.
Critics said the companies already carry out background checks and the extra requirements would discourage or unfairly bar many from becoming drivers. Mayor Rahm Emanuel was among those opposed to tougher rules on ride-hailing services, which had threatened to pull out of the city if the fingerprinting provision wasn't scrapped.
Beale agreed to delay fingerprinting for at least six months to allow more time to study that requirement.
The regulations passed Wednesday also require drivers to take a one-day course that can be completed online to get a chauffeur's license.
The compromise failed to satisfy the taxi industry, which argues that ride-hailing companies operate with an unfair advantage because they're not subjected to the same level of regulation.
Uber and Lyft are fighting similar requirements in other U.S. cities, arguing that tough restrictions could kill a venture that provides jobs and transportation in areas where traditional taxis are scarce. Both companies suspended services in Austin, Texas, last month after voters decided against overturning city requirements that include fingerprinting the drivers.
Beale told reporters on Monday that ride-hailing drivers in Chicago could still be subjected to fingerprinting in the future.
"They have six months, and if it comes back that fingerprinting is necessary, I promise you as strong as I am sitting here breathing, they are going to be mandated to fingerprint," Beale said.
Also Wednesday, the home-sharing ordinance passed the council 43-7. Critics say some owners have rented their properties to guests that change the character of the neighborhood.
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