A change made to the city’s codified ordinances by the Mount Vernon City Council on April 13 put the regulation of taxi cab companies and taxi drivers under the Utilities Commission, but it won’t have any control over ridesharing companies.
The update is intended to modernize how taxicabs are regulated in Mount Vernon. Law Director Rob Broeren told the city council that state law prevents municipalities from regulating ride sharing companies such as Uber and Lyft. “I’m sure that someone out there is thinking, but what about Uber and Lyft and those types of companies? The state has specifically removed the municipality’s ability to regulate the ride sharing companies so we can only regulate actual taxicabs,” Broeren said, according to a video recording of the meeting.
Broeren explained that Mayor Matt Starr recently received an inquiry from someone who purchased several old Checker cabs with plans to start a taxi service in Mount Vernon. This prompted city officials to review existing legislation regarding taxicab operations and driver licensing. After discussion, they determined that creating a separate taxicab commission was unnecessary since the public utilities commission already meets monthly. Broeren noted that the last known meeting of the former taxicab commission was likely in 2011, and it is unclear if it still has appointed members, according to the video recording.
The plan transfers all regulatory responsibilities for taxi services to the utilities commission while shifting licensing duties from the police department to a new city inspector. “This would modernize taxicab licensing and the drivers’ licensing and registration. The law director said the legislation before the City Council kills off the taxicab commission, transfers its powers to the utilities commission. The licensing and registration for the taxicab drivers that originally was handled by the police department shifts to the city inspector,” Broeren said, according to a video recording.
Broeren also provided background on local taxi regulation, stating that oversight began in 2009 after issues arose with Dad’s Taxi, which later ceased operations. “A group called Dad’s Taxi was operating a taxi business in the city and was having difficulties with various laws and rules… A couple of years later Dad’s Taxi sort of ‘withered away,'” he said, according to a video recording.
According to draft minutes of the meeting, Council member John Ruckman made a motion for final approval of the ordinance amendment, which passed unanimously with all seven council members voting in favor.
