Committee backs bill that presumes app-based substitute childcare workers are independent contractors

A House committee voted to favorably recommend House Bill 373, “Service Marketplace Platform Amendments,” which establishes a presumption that daycare providers who affiliate with marketplace apps are independent contractors rather than employees.

Sponsor Rep. Thompson told the committee the bill "authorizes [a] daycare provider to affiliate with a service marketplace platform and establishes a presumption that a daycare provider affiliating with a service marketplace platform is an independent contractor," and emphasized the measure "does not remove their liability or their responsibility to the state to still meet independent contractor qualifications." The sponsor framed the bill as a market-driven step to ease Utah’s childcare staffing shortages.

Supporters said the bill aims to expand flexible staffing options for centers facing critical shortages. Audrey Wood, speaking for the Utah Private Child Care Association, said the bill "will give flexibility and it will give them also another option for staffing." Tyler Morgan, founder of the Utah startup Upkid, said the platform model helps attract teachers who need schedule flexibility and that portability would help centers avoid chronic understaffing.

Committee members pressed the sponsor on safeguards. Representative Cutler asked whether the bill would allow long-term use of contractors and whether someone working on the app for “a year, 2 years” would remain a contractor. Thompson replied that the bill starts with a presumption of independent-contractor status for workers who choose shifts through an app and that "they're still going to have to meet all the requirements to be an independent contractor." He also said licensing, background checks and safety requirements remain unchanged: "This does not omit that. This just says once the licensing process is done ... what is the employer employee or employer worker relationship look like?"

The committee considered a motion to hold the bill, moved by Representative Miller, but later moved and passed a favorable recommendation to the House floor. The committee chair recorded the final favorable recommendation as passing "unanimously." The transcript does not include a specific numerical roll call for the final recommendation.

The bill’s sponsor referenced prior Utah precedent for app-based classifications and said a prior case involving a handyman app (2018) set a similar example for classifying gig workers.

The bill preserves existing licensure and background-check requirements and does not create new statutory exceptions to safety or licensing processes; it establishes a starting legal presumption about employment classification for individuals who choose shifts through a service marketplace platform.

The committee forwarded HB 373 with a favorable recommendation.

Ending: The committee closed public comment after remarks from industry and association representatives and moved the bill forward to the House floor.