Rideshare giant Uber has dusted off a familiar threat in its bid to defeat an effort in the Colorado legislature to tighten oversight of ride-hailing drivers and increase riders’ safety.
If the bill were to pass, a company spokesperson said, it would put “the future of Uber in Colorado in jeopardy.”
Uber made the threat in a statement to The Denver Post last week after House Bill 1291 passed the state House on an overwhelming 59-6 vote. The measure is backed by Rep. Jenny Willford, a lawmaker who said she was sexually assaulted by a Lyft driver last year.
The bill would require companies to conduct background checks on their drivers, both when a driver begins working for the company and then at least every six months after.
HB-1291, which passed a Senate committee Tuesday, also would require that each ride be continually recorded and that rideshare companies respond quickly to subpoenas and search warrants. The companies would also have to prevent drivers from sharing their app profiles; Willford said she was sexually assaulted by a person driving under another operator’s account.
“Uber and Lyft have a severe and pervasive safety problem,” Willford, a Northglenn Democrat, said during earlier debate in the House.
After her assault, Willford said, the company refunded her ride and promised not to connect her with the same driver again.
“They are in crisis, whether they want to admit it or not,” Willford said. “It’s why they’ve spent billions on marketing to convince the public they’re safe (to use). They stay on message: safety, safety, safety.”
Willford is also suing Lyft over last year’s incident.
After the bill passed the House on April 16, Uber warned about its future in the state and described the proposal as “deeply flawed.” The company alleged that it would “do more harm than good.”
In a Senate committee hearing Tuesday, Adam Blinick, who oversees policy outreach in the U.S. and Canada for Uber, said the bill would be “impossible for us to comply with” and that it would put too many legal burdens on the company.
He specifically highlighted the requirements around recording and a prohibition on drivers sharing food or beverages with passengers. The company itself, he argued, can’t control what happens in every ride.
The Colorado Sun reported earlier Wednesday on Uber’s departure threat.
In a statement Wednesday, Lyft didn’t go as far as its ride-hailing cousin. Spokesman CJ Macklin wrote that the company believes “there is a compromise that can be reached that would be beneficial for both riders and drivers, but there are still several aspects of the bill that would make implementation extremely problematic.”
Macklin did not immediately respond to a follow-up question about whether Lyft was similarly threatening to pull out of Colorado, should HB-1291 pass as written.
Both companies, which have acknowledged thousands of sexual assault reports against their drivers in recent years, defended previous efforts to improve safety for both passengers and drivers.
The debate in Colorado is not the first time ridesharing companies have threatened to depart a city or state should local policymakers pass regulations the companies oppose. In 2016, Uber and Lyft both pulled out of Austin after the City Council there voted to require them to fingerprint drivers and run background checks. The Texas legislature later rolled back those regulations, prompting the companies to return.
Last year, the companies threatened to leave Minneapolis after that city’s council proposed — and later passed — a minimum wage increase. The companies ultimately decided to stay after the Minnesota legislature reduced the wage increase.
The Colorado bill’s supporters have downplayed or dismissed the threats. Willford called it a “cynical and disheartening move by a multibillion-dollar company” and said she’d worked with the company “for months.”
During the bill’s Senate committee vote Tuesday, Sen. Jessie Danielson, a Wheat Ridge Democrat, said departure threats were “not a great way to look at this.” She said it was possible for the state to both have ride-hailing services and “true safety measures.”
HB-1291 now heads to the full Senate. The legislature is set to conclude its 2025 session on May 7.
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