Senate committee advances bill to codify rideshare drivers as independent contractors, bar vicarious claims

The Senate Transportation Committee voted to advance LC394702S, a measure intended to place in state code a confirmation that rideshare drivers are independent contractors and to restrict vicarious liability claims against rideshare platforms.

Representative Leverett, who presented the bill, said the measure "is not changing the substantive law concerning these rideshare service drivers. It's just confirming it in code." He described section 2 as the primary function of the bill and said the change is intended to put the rule in the code to give notice to potential plaintiffs and assist insurance underwriting.

Witnesses included Michelle Blackwell, who testified on behalf of Uber and said the company "is obviously in support of this legislation because we just think that this just codifies current practices" and that insurance costs can be affected by how the law is stated. Nick Giuliano of Impact Public Affairs said that "when a driver is in an accident and they are logged on to a rideshare platform, Uber's insurance or Lyft's insurance that engages there" and that the bill seeks to avoid time-consuming suits that are routinely dismissed on a motion to dismiss.

Les Schneider, representing the Georgia Atlanta Limousine Association and taxi companies, urged that taxi and limousine firms be treated the same as rideshare companies and said the industries differ on insurance and background-check regimes. The committee heard questions from multiple senators about potential effects on driver insurance costs, route direction and platform control, enforcement of background checks and the consequences for passengers seeking redress.

The committee considered a motion to table the bill made by Chairman Moore (seconded by Senator Mallow); that motion to table failed on a 2–7 voice tally. Later, Chairman Beach moved the underlying measure and the committee recorded a 6–3 vote in favor of a motion to pass LC394702S. The sponsor and supporters said the bill is intended to reduce court delays by putting an explicit statement of the law in the code while preserving direct-liability exceptions in the draft for failures such as inadequate background checks or deliberate negligence.

The transcript records debate over whether taxis and limousines should be included; Representative Leverett said adding those sectors could jeopardize the bill's support and its chances of passage. The limousine and taxi group said they would offer an amendment to extend similar protections to referral arrangements; the sponsor declined to accept that amendment at committee. Several senators asked staff to draft a copy of the proposed amendment and to consider the issue outside the committee record.

The committee passed the measure without recorded amendments and asked the sponsor to secure a Senate floor carrier.