A House committee heard nearly two hours of testimony Thursday but took no vote on a bill that would require drivers for Uber and Lyft submit to fingerprinting and state background checks.
The Regulated Industries Committee will meet again next week on House Bill 224, sponsored by Rep. Alan Powell, R-Hartwell.
Powell, chairman of the Public Safety Committee, wants all drivers for the popular ride-sharing services to follow the same rules as limo drivers. That includes getting fingerprinted and a state background check.
Uber, he said, has helped spread misinformation about the bill.
“It has created a blind spot in people’s minds,” Powell said.
Rep. Tom Taylor, R-Dunwoody, said he doesn't understand the aversion to fingerprinting drivers. He had to be finger-printed to coach youth soccer and basketball.
“To have that done once in five or 10 years is not an onerous process,” he said.
But, Lyft driver Armand Saramout said if he had to pay for fingerprinting and a proposed registration fee of several hundred dollars, he never would have gone through the hassle.
As it is, he said, Lyft has “helped me become financially independent.”
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