Uber is threatening to pull out of Colorado if a bill instituting new safety regulations on rideshare companies is enacted as written.
House Bill 1291, which would enshrine these changes, passed by a veto-proof 59-6 majority in the house earlier this month. The state Senate is taking up the bill this week with the General Assembly session scheduled to end May 7. The proposed changes include:
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Audio and video recording of all trips with the rideshare companies providing the equipment for drivers.
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A ban on drivers offering or providing snacks or water to passengers.
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Mandatory safety screenings of drivers every six months.
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More stringent verification that the driver is actually the person the account belongs to.
Why is Uber threatening to leave Colorado?
In an April 23 email to riders, Uber said the conditions would make it impossible to operate in the state. Specifically it called the recording requirements an invasion of riders’ privacy, and said the prohibition on food and drink would create “unworkable conditions” with “impractical” requirements and predicted the whole package would lead to “frivolous lawsuits that would drive up costs.”
“We believe there’s a better way to ensure safety and accessibility without sacrificing your privacy or forcing Uber out of the state, and we’re ready to find a middle ground,” the email said.
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Why are new safety rules for Uber being proposed in Colorado?
State Rep. Jenny Willford, a Northglenn Democrat who introduced the bill in January, has said rideshare companies need to do more to protect passengers. She sued Lyft in January, alleging she was sexually assaulted by a driver using someone else’s account in 2024, according to Colorado Newsline.
In a statement posted to her Instagram account on April 24, Willford called Uber’s threat to leave Colorado a “cynical and disheartening move by a multi-billion dollar company to turn their back on survivors rather than implement real safety measures.”
Willford said legislators have “worked with Uber in good faith for months and accepted many of their amendment requests – including a full rewrite of the bill.”
Has Uber threatened to stop its service in other areas?
Yes, many times and all were eventually resolved.
In 2024, Uber and Lyft both said they would stop serving riders in and around Minneapolis after its city council tried to impose higher wages for drivers. State legislators eventually passed a bill overriding the city’s ordinance and the services never left.
In 2016, Uber and Lyft did shut down in Austin, Texas, over a city ordinance that imposed several restrictions on working conditions, driver verification and pay. It returned in 2017 after a state law stripped local government of the ability to regulate rideshare companies.
Other disputes including ones in California, Seattle, Phoenix and Chicago that led Uber to threaten to cut service were resolved without services ending.
Nate Trela covers trending news in Colorado and Utah for the USA TODAY Network.
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Is Uber leaving Colorado? Not yet, but here’s what to know
