AB 2763

San Francisco Taxi Workers Alliance    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                               August  25,  2016  

Governor  Jerry  Brown   State  Capitol   Suite  1173   Sacramento,  CA  95814    

AB  2763  Veto  Request     Dear  Governor  Brown,     The  San  Francisco  Taxi  Workers  Alliance  respectfully  requests  that  you  veto  AB  2763,  which   changes  the  definition  of  “personal  vehicle”  to  allow  drivers  for  Transportation  Network  Companies   (TNCs)  to  rent  or  lease  vehicles  primarily  and  exclusively  for  commercial  purposes.    This  will  cause   extreme  damage  to  the  environment  and  undermine  the  California  Public  Utilities  Commission’s   rulemaking  proceedings  on  this  subject.    The  bill  contradicts  the  rationale  for  creating  this  special,   exempted  category  of  for  hire  transportation  by  eliminating  “the  primary  difference  between  TNCs   and  TCP  vehicles”  as  stated  in  its  Decision  13-­‐09-­‐045:     “TNC  drivers  drive  their  own  personal  vehicles”  and  “the  difference  between  a  TCP  licensed   vehicle  and  a  TNC  is  that  unlike  a  limousine,  a  TNC  vehicle  is  not  purchased  primarily  for  a   commercial  purpose”.     This  violates  the  guarantees  of  Equal  Protection  of  the  Laws  contained  in  the  California  and  US   Constitutions,  as  it  creates  two  groups  that  provide  essentially  the  same  service  to  the  same   custumers,  but  are  subject  to  very  different  rules  that  impose  additional  costs  and  burdens  to  one   but  not  the  other.     This  bill  also  seeks  to  circumvent  the  CPUC’s  rulemaking  process.    After  the  Commission  had   solicited  comments  on  this  subject  and  proposed  a  minimum  four  month  lease  to  qualify  as  “a   personal  vehicle”,  AB  2763  was  “gut  and  amended”  at  the  last  minute  by  the  committee  chair,  and   voted  on  the  following  week  ,  giving  little  notice  for  opposing  arguments.    This  bill  flew  through  the   legislature  because  of  the  enormously  financed  lobbying  efforts  of  Uber  and  Lyft,  with  the  support   of  GM,  Hertz,  Enterprise  and  others  who  profit  from  adding  more  autos  to  the  roads.    Another  round   of  comments  has  been  solicited  on  this  issue,  but  the  Commission  would  be  preempted  from  acting   on  them  should  AB  2763  become  law.     Although  Lyft  and  Uber  claim  to  take  vehicles  off  the  road,  they  are  in  fact  doing  exactly  the   opposite.    Since  TNC  drivers  don’t  have  the  normal  costs  or  regulations  of  running  a  taxi  or  a  TCP   vehicle,  cars  that  would  otherwise  be  parked  are  now  cruising  around  or  staging  in  populated  areas,   making  themselves  available  for  hire.    These  companies  offer  incentives  for  people  without  cars  to   buy  or  rent  them,  and  to  work  full-­‐time.    

2940 16th St. # 313, San Francisco, CA 94103 415-864-8294 * [email protected] * www.sftwa.org * labor donated

  There  has  been  no  official  EIR  on  the  impact  of  TNCs,  but  we  would  like  to  draw  your  attention  to   the  shocking  environmental  changes  that  have  occurred  since  January  2013,  when  the  CPUC   rescinded  its  cease  and  desist  orders  on  Uber  and  Lyft.    This  resulted  in  an  unlimited  number  of   vehicles  congesting  our  roads  and  even  coming  from  across  the  state.    The  San  Francisco  Treasurer   has  identified  37,000  TNC  drivers  in  San  Francisco  alone,  a  high  percentage  of  them  are  fulltime   drivers.    This  compared  to  less  than  4,500  active  cabdrivers,  many  of  whom  are  part-­‐time,  in  fewer   than  2,000  hybrid  and  alternative  fuel  taxis.    There  are  an  estimated  180,000  TNC  drivers  in   California  and  this  number  is  growing.     In  2012  GPS  developer  TomTom’s  annual  traffic  index  listed  San  Francisco  as  the  6th  most   congested  city  in  the  US.    By  2015  San  Francisco  became  the  2nd  most  congested,  next  to  Los   Angeles.     A  study  from  the  San  Francisco  Transportation  Authority  Congestion  Management  Program  from   2007  to  2015  shows  average  peak  period  traffic  speeds  remaining  steady  and  even  increasing  at   times,  until  2013,  when  they  sharply  dropped  18%  over  the  next  two  years,  by  the  end  of  2015.     In  2013  the  San  Francisco  Bay  Area  wasn’t  even  listed  in  the  American  Lung  Association’s  25  most   polluted  regions.    Two  years  later,  in  2015,  it  was  seventh  in  year-­‐round  particle  pollutants,  and  this   year  it’s  become  number  six.     We  know  from  advertisements  and  social  media  chat  that  drivers  are  renting  and  buying  second   vehicles  for  TNC  use,  so  as  not  to  wear  out  their  true  “personal  vehicle”.    Some  drivers  are  buying   several  cars  and  renting  them  out  as  TNCs.    Not  only  are  TNCs  not  taking  cars  off  the  road,  but  in   conjunction  with  GM,  Toyota  and  rental  car  companies,  they  are  marketing  to  those  without   vehicles.    This  bill  will  also  allow  multiple  drivers  on  the  same  vehicle,  placing  them  on  the  road   potentially  24  hours  a  day.     This  runs  directly  counter  to  California’s  efforts  to  protect  the  environment  by  reducing  greenhouse   gas  emissions.     Aside  from  the  devastating  environmental  impact  this  bill  will  create  if  passed  into  law,  and  the   contradictory  regulatory  standards  it  creates,  AB  2763  also  opens  the  door  wider  to  predatory   lending  practices  which  are  already  occuring  on  a  widespread  level.     We  would  like  to  request  a  meeting  to  discuss  these  concerns  in  further  detail.     Thank  you  for  your  consideration  of  this  important  matter.     Respectfully,     Barry  Korengold   The  San  Francisco  Taxi  Workers  Alliance   2940  16th  Street,  #313   San  Francisco,  CA    94103   [email protected]