Members of the Colorado House Business Affairs and Labor Committee voted across party lines to pass a modified version of a bill establishing regulations on rideshare companies.

Last year, Reps. Jenny Willford, D-Northglenn, and Meg Froelich, D-Englewood, introduced House Bill 1291, which proposed a number of new safety requirements for rideshare drivers and customers.

The bill was personal for Willford, who says she was sexually assaulted by a man impersonating a Lyft driver in 2024.

House Bill 1291 required rideshare companies to conduct criminal background checks on drivers at least once every six months and review drivers who have had complaints filed against them by riders. If the company determined that the allegation is “more than likely to have occurred,” it would have had to deactivate the driver’s profile.

The measure included a number of other provisions, including requiring rideshare companies to respond to subpoenas and search warrants within 48 hours, allowing drivers to opt in to audio and video recordings of rides, and prohibiting drivers from sharing with or renting accounts to individuals not registered with the app.

Representatives from Uber opposed the bill, saying its requirements were unworkable and even threatening to leave the state should it pass.

Gov. Jared Polis seemed persuaded by that threat, ultimately vetoing the bill after the session ended.

In his veto letter, Polis said the bill would impose unworkable regulations on rideshare companies and potentially jeopardize their continued operation in Colorado.

“I want to make sure that Uber, Lyft, and others will be able to continue to operate in Colorado, but are far more accountable for the safety of riders and drivers,” he said. “These services go beyond convenience by providing essential means of travel for many Coloradans and improve public safety primarily by reducing driving under the influence.”

Polis also cited concerns about the bill’s language on audio-visual recordings and the prohibition on arbitration.

Willford, Froelich, and Senate sponsors Jessie Danielson, D-Wheat Ridge, and the late Faith Winter, D-Westminster, released a statement following the veto.

“The governor says he cares about survivors, but actions speak louder than words,” the lawmakers wrote. “When he had the opportunity to act, he chose to side with convenience and profits of billion-dollar corporations instead of the survivors who shared their horrific experiences over and over again.”

This year, Willford and Froelich have returned with a version of the bill they say has Polis’ support.

House Bill 1424 allows drivers to provide riders with food and beverages, but only if they are factory-sealed. The bill is also different from last year’s measure in that it does not include a private right of action for individuals who have been harassed or assaulted and allows drivers to opt in to audio and video recordings.

“We have definitely scaled back the bill,” said Willford.

‘There’s not a day that goes by that I’m not impacted’

Willford once again told committee members her story, adding that she was never informed if the profile her attacker used was deactivated, switched to Uber, or set up an account under his own name.

“The incident haunts me, and there’s not a day that goes by that I’m not impacted,” she said. “I’m not the same person that I was before the assault, and frankly, I’m not sure that I’ll ever see that version of me again. What continues to impact me is that I’m far from the only person who has a story like this. Hundreds of thousands of people across the United States, as well as across Colorado, have a story too.”

Willford referenced a recent case in Arvada in which an Uber driver was arrested for sexually assaulting a woman, driving off with her still in his car after her boyfriend exited the vehicle.

Willford alleged that Uber has underreported the number of sexual harassment and misconduct reports it receives from riders and drivers.

“For years, any time that Uber has been portrayed negatively in the media, they double down and they invest in marketing, increasing their ad buys across platforms to tell people just how safe they are,” she said. “Can you imagine how much safer Uber might be if they’d taken that money and put it into their app to actually prevent the sex assaults from ever happening in the first place?”

Uber mostly supports the bill, but requests some changes

Stefanie Sass, a representative of Uber, said the company “valued a productive dialogue” with the bill’s sponsors.

While they supported most of HB 1424’s provisions, there were still several things they wanted to amend — Uber already automatically removes drivers found to have committed a crime and enacts real-time ID checks to prevent fraud and account sharing. Additionally, the app already provides riders the option to record audio of their rides and drivers can record both audio and video if they choose.

“At this stage, we are not confident about the bill being workable as written,” Sass said. “We’ve made workable progress with this legislation through our work with the sponsors. That said, some of the provisions still present some technical and operational challenges that we believe need further refinement.”

Uber’s goal is to get to a place where they can comply with the state’s regulations while continuing to provide “safe, reliable transportation for people across Colorado,” Sass added.

While all 13 committee members expressed support for Willford and Froelich’s bill, the five Republicans of the group said they wanted to see a few more changes made before they could vote for it.

Rep. Chris Richardson of Elizabeth said he was concerned about how the bill’s definitions of small and large rideshare companies could impact lesser-known businesses like HopSkipDrive, which provides transportation to students and seniors.

“I am a no today, and it’s not because of the work you’ve done or where I think you’re going; it’s just, I’ve been here long enough to have been a ‘yes for today’ and been burned, not by yourself but other colleagues, so I want to reserve my yes for when I see this shaped up a little more,” he said.

The bill passed on an 8-5 party-line vote. Its next stop is the House floor for debate.