5154015 Taxicab Commission, DC - Notice of Proposed Rulemaking- Amending Chapters 16 and 99 - Universal Taxicab App Rules
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DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA TAXICAB COMMISSION
NOTICE OF PROPOSED RULEMAKING
The District of Columbia Taxicab Commission (“Commission”), pursuant to the authority set forth in Sections 8(c)(2), (3), (5), (7), (8), (19), 14, 20, and 20a of the District of Columbia Taxicab Commission Establishment Act of 1985 (“Establishment Act”), effective March 25, 1986 (D.C. Law 6-97; D.C. Official Code §§ 50-307(c)(2) (3), (5), (7), (8), (19), 50-319, and 50-320 (2012 Repl. & 2013 Supp.)), and D.C. Official Code § 47-2829 (b), (d), (e), (e-1), and (i) (2012 Repl. and 2013 Supp.), hereby gives notice of its intent to adopt amendments to Chapter 16 (Dispatch Services) of Title 31 (Taxicabs and Public Vehicles for Hire) of the District of Columbia Municipal Regulations (DCMR).
The proposed rulemaking would amend the existing regulations for dispatch in Chapter 16, by requiring the establishment of the District of Columbia Taxicab Industry Co-op (“Co-op”). The Co-op would be an industry-owned, not-for-profit entity, chartered for the purpose of promoting and facilitating the use of insured, DCTC-licensed taxicabs, including wheelchair accessible vehicles, by the residents of and visitors to the District of Columbia. The Co-op would manage and supervise the industry’s use of the District of Columbia Universal Taxicab App (“DC TaxiApp”), which all DCTC licensed taxicabs would be required to use, in addition to any other apps registered with the Office of Taxicabs (“Office”) under this chapter which they may choose to use. The Co-op would establish competitive, market-based rates and charges for trips booked by digital dispatch through the DC TaxiApp. All definitions applicable to this chapter would appear in Chapter 99.
Directions for submitting comments may be found at the end of this notice. The Commission also hereby gives notice of the intent to take final rulemaking action to adopt these proposed rules in not less than thirty (30) days after the publication of this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in the D.C. Register.
Chapter 16, DISPATCH SERVICES, of Title 31, TAXICABS AND PUBLIC VEHICLES FOR HIRE, of the DCMR, is amended as follows:
1612 DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA UNIVERSAL TAXICAB APP
1612.1 Beginning _____, 2015 (“implementation date”), each DCTC taxicab operator shall provide service only when logged into and accepting digital dispatches through the District of Columbia Universal Taxicab App (“DC TaxiApp”), which shall be made available by the District of Columbia Taxicab Industry Co-op (“Co-op”), to be established and operated by the District taxicab industry pursuant to § 1613.
1612.2 Following the implementation date, each taxicab operator may use an app provided by any digital dispatch service in addition to the DC TaxiApp, provided the operator is at all times in compliance with the applicable provisions of this title and other applicable laws, and is not required by a written agreement with the taxicab owner to use only the DC TaxiApp.
1612.3 Pursuant to Chapter 8 of this title, the metered rate for taxicab service provided pursuant to a digital dispatch using the DC TaxiApp shall be set at zero dollars ($0).
1612.4 All rates and charges, if any, for trips booked by digital dispatch via the DC TaxiApp shall be established by the Co-op pursuant to § 1613.
1612.5 No operator shall fail to be logged into the DC TaxiApp at any time when providing taxicab service. In addition to any other penalty prescribed by another provision of this title, a violation of this subsection may result in a civil fine of one hundred dollars ($100) for the first violation, which shall double for the second violation, and triple for the third and subsequent violations in any twelve month period.
1612.6 No operator shall refuse to transport a person when service is requested through the DC TaxiApp, including failing to respond to an electronic request for service according to the procedures established by the Co-op. A violation of this subsection shall be treated as a refusal to haul pursuant to § 819.5.
1612.7 No operator shall charge a fare for a trip booked by digital dispatch through the DC TaxiApp which varies from the rates and charges determined by Co-op. In addition to any other penalty prescribed by another provision of this title, a violation of this subsection may result in a civil fine of two hundred dollars ($200) for the first violation, which shall double for the second violation, and triple for the third and subsequent violations in any twelve month period.
1612.8 Nothing in this section or § 1613 shall be construed to constitute a delegation to the Co-op of a non-delegable legal duty of the Commission or the Office.
1612.9 Nothing in this section or § 1613 shall be construed to prevent the Office from enforcing any applicable provision of this title or other applicable law.
1613 District of Columbia Taxicab Industry Co-op
1613.1 The Co-op shall be an industry-owned, not-for-profit entity, chartered for the purpose of promoting and facilitating the use of insured, DCTC-licensed taxicabs, including wheelchair accessible vehicles, by the residents of and visitors to the District of Columbia. The Co-op shall manage and supervise the industry’s use of the DC TaxiApp, which all DCTC licensed taxicabs shall be required to use while providing taxicab service, in addition to any other apps registered with the Office under this chapter. The Co-op shall establish competitive, market-based rates and charges for trips booked by digital dispatch through the DC TaxiApp.
1613.2 The Co-op’s operations, the marketing, availability, functionality, and design of the DC TaxiApp, and the rates and charges for digital dispatch, shall not give preferential treatment to any individual or group of persons regulated by this title or other applicable law, including any member of the Co-op or other person;
1613.3 The taxicab companies required by D.C. Official Code § 50-329.02 to provide dispatch services (“charter members”) shall work cooperatively to establish the Co-op pursuant to the provisions of this section and § 1612, and to ensure that it is in full operation not later than the implementation date.
1613.4 The Co-op shall be owned by its members, including independent owners, taxicab companies, and taxicab associations, as follows:
(a) Each charter member shall be a member of the Co-op, for which it shall provide a capital contribution based on the number of vehicles with which it is associated; and
(b) Each taxicab association or company with between twenty (20) and ninety nine (99) vehicles, and each independent owner, may, but shall not be required to, be a member of the Co-op, for which it shall make a capital contribution of one hundred dollars ($100) per vehicle, unless the Board of Directors determines otherwise.
1613.5 The initial capital contributions of the charter members required by § 1613.4 (a) shall be paid at the time the Co-op is established. Additional fees may be assessed to the members of the Co-op as determined by the Board of Directors.
1613.6 The charter members shall provide a plan for the Co-op’s establishment to the Office not later than ______, 2015, which shall contain:
(a) Drafts of the Co-op’s articles of incorporation and bylaws;
(b) The date by which the Co-op shall be incorporated;
(c) A description of the Co-op’s proposed structure, including the composition of its Board of Directors, and its administrative offices and positions;
(d) A description of the licenses and permits needed by the Co-op, and documentation showing that all information for such licenses and permits will be provided;
(e) A description of the legal, technical, and other services that will be necessary to establish the Co-op;
(f) An estimate of the expected startup costs, including all attorney’s fees, license and permit fees, and similar costs;
(g) The date for the charter member meeting to elect the Board of Directors, approve the bylaws, and take such actions as may be required by law; and
(h) Such other information and documentation as may be required by the Office to evaluate and approve the plan.
1613.7 The Office shall review the plan required by § 1613.6 and issue a decision to approve it within ten (10) days. If the Office does not approve the plan, it shall include in its decision specific instructions on how the plan shall be amended or modified in order to gain approval. The charter members shall cooperate with the Office at all times to insure that the Co-op is established by the implementation date.
1613.8 Each charter member shall have standing to appeal the Office’s decision to the Chief of the Office, whose decision may be further appealed to the Commission. A decision of the Commission shall be a final agency decision.
1613.9 A taxicab company required to be a charter member of the Co-op which fails to comply with a requirement of this section or § 1612 shall be subject to the suspension of its certificate of operating authority for a period of not more than fifteen (15) days, and a fine of two thousand dollars ($2,000), for the first violation, which shall double for the second violation, and triple for the third and subsequent violations in any thirty (30) day period.
1613.10 During the first twenty four (24) months following the establishment of the Co-op, the Office may make one or more grants to the Co-op in an amount not to exceed twenty five thousand dollars ($25,000), to defray the documented operating expenses of the Co-op, upon such terms and conditions as may be contained in the grant. Each grant shall be made pursuant to all applicable laws, regulations, and guidelines, and any administrative issuance of the Office.
1613.11 The Office shall acquire or develop an app for use as the DC TaxiApp, which shall be licensed to the Co-op at no cost. The Co-op shall be given an exclusive right to use the app within the District.
1613.12 Nothing in this section or § 1612 shall be construed as soliciting or creating a contractual relationship, agency relationship, or employer-employee relationship between the District of Columbia and any other person.
1613.13 The Co-op shall:
(a) Be a non-profit entity organized under the laws of the District of Columbia;
(b) Have a bona fide place of business in the District;
(c) Be organized and operated according to all applicable requirements of this title, and other applicable laws, including all District and federal anti-discrimination laws;
(d) Have a Board of Directors which shall establish all policies of the Co-op, and supervise the daily operations of the Co-op’s administrative office;
(e) Remit on a quarterly basis to the District of Columbia’s Office of the Chief Financial Officer (“OCFO”) a payment in the amount of two percent (2%) of its gross operating revenue for the prior quarter, at which time it shall file with the Office appropriate documentation under oath to substantiate the amount of the payment;
(f) Provide all necessary service and support for the use of the DC TaxiApp by passengers, owners, and operators;
(g) Develop, distribute, and require the acceptance of terms of service between the Co-op and vehicle owners and operators, and between the Co-op and passengers, including a distribution agreement with vehicle owners, for the use of the DC TaxiApp; and
(h) Market the DC TaxiApp to encourage its use by all passengers seeking service from a DCTC-licensed taxicab;
(i) Instruct vehicle owners and operators in the safe and proper use of the DC TaxiApp, including the process by which an operator is notified of a request for transportation;
(j) Establish requirements for No operator shall refuse to transport a person when service is requested through the DC TaxiApp, including failing to respond to an electronic request for service in the manner prescribed by the Co-op.
(k) Establish the publicize the rates and charges for digital dispatch of a taxicab via the DC TaxiApp, which may include such fees as are necessary to support the functions of the Co-op;
(l) Promote the use of wheelchair accessible vehicles for passengers who request them, which may include the use of incentives to increase the availability of wheelchair accessible vehicles;
(m) Ensure that the DC TaxiApp supports the availability of taxicab service throughout the District, including any underserved areas designated by the Office;
(n) Ensure that the DC TaxiApp functions so as to prevent unlawful discrimination;
(o) Ensure that the Co-op’s operations, the marketing, availability, functionality, and design of the DC TaxiApp, and the rates and charges for digital dispatch, do not give preferential treatment to any individual or group of persons regulated by this title or other applicable law, including any member of the Co-op or other person;
(p) Carry such commercial insurance policies as may be necessary to protect the public and passengers in the event of an accident;
(q) Maintain its business records for five (5) years, and provide the Office with access to such records and to its personnel as required by all applicable provisions of this title; and
(r) Comply with all applicable provisions of this title and other applicable laws, all administrative issuances of the Office, and all requirements for maintaining its status as a non-profit entity.
Chapter 99, DEFINITIONS, of Title 31, TAXICABS AND PUBLIC VEHICLES FOR HIRE, of the DCMR, is amended to read as follows:
Section 9901, DEFINITIONS, is amended to add these definitions as follows:
Co-op – the District of Columbia Taxicab Industry Co-op as defined herein.
DC TaxiApp – the District of Columbia Universal Taxicab App as defined herein.
District of Columbia Taxicab Industry Co-op - a non-profit entity established and operated by the District of Columbia taxicab industry pursuant to this chapter.
District of Columbia Universal Taxicab App – a software platform for use on smartphones to provide for the digital dispatch of available insured, DCTC-licensed taxicabs.
Copies of this proposed rulemaking can be obtained at www.dcregs.dc.gov or by contacting Juanda Mixon, Secretary to the Commission, District of Columbia Taxicab Commission, 2041 Martin Luther King, Jr., Avenue, S.E., Suite 204, Washington, D.C. 20020. All persons desiring to file comments on the proposed rulemaking action should submit written comments via e-mail to dctc@dc.gov or by mail to the DC Taxicab Commission, 2041 Martin Luther King, Jr., Ave., S.E., Suite 204, Washington, DC 20020, Attn: Juanda Mixon, Secretary to the Commission, no later than thirty (30) days after the publication of this notice in the D.C. Register.
