Janelle Irwin TaylorAugust 11, 2020
8min1200
Smith has been a key player in the Florida rideshare space.
Tag: Hillsborough PTCMike Johnson. Image via AP.
Janelle Irwin TaylorAugust 11, 2020
Mitch PerryJune 7, 2017
4min257
Among the bills Governor Rick Scott signed into law on Tuesday is HB 647, which eliminates of the Hillsborough County Public Transportation Commission by December 31 of this year. The agency, originally created by a special act of the Florida Legislature in the 1970’s and the only one of its kind in the state, has been […]
Mitch PerryFebruary 6, 2017
3min210
Tampa GOP state Representative Jamie Grant has filed a bill (HB 647) that would eliminate the controversial Hillsborough County Public Transportation Commission. “With new information being made public every day, it becomes increasingly clear that this agency needs to be abolished,” Grant said in a statement. “Everything that has come to light has confirmed what we knew […]
Mitch PerrySeptember 14, 2016
6min153
Outgoing Florida Speaker of the House Steve Crisafulli penned an opinion piece yesterday slamming Hillary Clinton‘s now-infamous “basket of deplorables” phrase to describe half of Donald Trump‘s supporters. “By calling so many of our nation’s citizens ‘deplorable’ haters and racists and the other half too stupid to make their own decisions about who should be our next president, […]
Mitch PerrySeptember 13, 2016
4min519
Writing that “Hillsborough County is better than this,” Dana Young is the latest Tampa Bay area lawmaker calling for the Hillsborough County Public Transportation Commission to reject proposed new rules that ridesharing companies Uber and Lyft say would force them out of the local market. In a letter Tuesday to PTC Chair Victor Crist, Young says the current […]
Mitch PerryJuly 11, 2016
6min174
The Hillsborough County Public Transportation Commission is poised to begin increasing fines on Uber and Lyft drivers soon, and that’s not going down well with one of the agency’s biggest critics, state Sen. Jeff Brandes. The St. Petersburg Republican has frequently criticized the PTC over the years for their confrontational stance towards the two ridesharing companies, […]
Mitch PerryJuly 7, 2016
4min202
Even before they began operating in Tampa, a coterie of Tampa Bay area Republicans have championed ridesharing companies Uber and Lyft. Those state Representatives include Jeff Brandes, Jamie Grant and Dana Young. In a fundraising pitch sent to supporters in her bid for the state Senate District 18 seat this fall, Young boasts about the work Republicans […]
Mitch PerryJune 23, 2016
5min290
A court has rejected a request by a coalition of taxi cab companies to have Victor Crist removed as chair of the Hillsborough County Public Transportation Commission. The Second District Court of Appeal in Lakeland issued an order dismissing the request Thursday. “This was a malicious intent by the taxi coalition and their representatives to discredit me,” Crist said, […]
Ryan RayMarch 11, 2016
3min304
A compromise between Republican lawmakers and ride-hailing firms like Uber was on thin ice Friday afternoon as Session raced to a close, until finally, the bill hit a brick wall. Sen. David Simmons, the Senate Rules Chair, had worked on the bill (SB 1118) for months. It would have mandated minimum commercial insurance requirements for drivers with Uber and […]
Mitch PerryJanuary 12, 20165min428
Opening the 2016 Legislative Session Tuesday, Speaker Steve Crisafulli listed the priorities that he expects the House to focus on in 2016. That included an endorsement of Gov. Rick Scott‘s goal of cutting taxes by $1 billion, something that Senate members have expressed discomfort with. He also put in a good word for legislation that would regulate ridesharing […]