Committee Approves Rideshare Safety and Accountability Act

HB26-1424 would keep riders and drivers safe by requiring stronger policies and reporting for TNCs

DENVER, CO – The Senate Transportation and Energy Committee today passed a bill sponsored by Senate Assistant Majority Leader Lisa Cutter, D-Jefferson County, and Senator Katie Wallace, D-Longmont, to establish new safety requirements for transportation network companies (TNCs), including Uber and Lyft. The Colorado Rideshare Safety and Accountability Act would require more frequent background checks and crack down on imposter accounts.

“Too many women are put at risk in rideshares. We must do everything we can to protect people who use these services,” Cutter said. “This bill includes measures to require comprehensive vetting, policies against shared driver accounts, and increased accountability for safety complaints to ensure timely protections for drivers and passengers.”

“Countless Coloradans rely on rideshare services like Uber and Lyft to get to work, school, medical appointments, and home safely after a night out. For many people these services are not simply a convenience, they are a necessity," Wallace said. “This bill sends a clear message: convenience cannot come at the expense of safety, and no rider should have to fear for their wellbeing when they get into a vehicle they are trusting to get them home safely."

The Colorado Rideshare Safety and Accountability Act (HB26-1424) would establish new safety requirements and policies designed to keep riders and drivers safe. The bill would apply to large-scale rideshare companies with more than 20,000 monthly rides and does not apply to HopSkipDrive.

More frequent background checks

• TNCs must procure privately administered background checks on drivers every six months after the initial criminal history record check.

Crackdown on imposter, shared and rented accounts 

• To help prevent multiple drivers from operating under one account, this bill would require TNCs to develop and enforce a company policy against impostor drivers, account sharing, and account renting. 

Stronger driver vetting and clear disqualifications

• Drivers with a history of convictions for assault, harassment, kidnapping, menacing, stalking, or domestic violence, or who had previously been caught account sharing, would be barred from driving with a rideshare company. 

• If a driver is barred by one rideshare company for serious safety concerns, they would be barred from driving for all TNCs operating in Colorado. This also applies to drivers who were disqualified from driving for a rideshare company in another state with similar TNC regulations to Colorado.

Robust complaint procedures and survivor updates

• If a rider submits a complaint to a TNC about their driver, the TNC must provide up-to-date information to the Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to investigate complaints. Additionally, the TNC must respond to a complaint-related subpoena or search warrant within 72 hours.

• Survivors may also opt in to receive updates about their complaint.

• If a complaint is filed against a driver, the TNC must procure a new background check before the driver can drive again.  

Improved transparency and accountability 

• TNCs must provide annual reports to the PUC, the Attorney General’s Office and every member of the General Assembly. These reports must include the number of homicides, assaults, verbal threats, and accidents, as well as any instances of stalking, harassment, theft and discrimination. 

• The PUC may penalize a TNC that violates any provision of HB26-1424 up to $1,500 per violation.

• TNCs must provide ongoing driver and rider safety training based on rules adopted by the PUC.

• The PUC would be required to create rules and standards for driver and rider audio and video recording by June 1, 2028. This includes opt-in and opt-out procedures for both drivers and riders, rider preference for drivers with recording available, and the procedures and timeline for TNCs to integrate audio and video recording directly into their apps. 

Additionally, TNCs would need to establish and enforce certain policies that:

• Prevent sexual assault, physical assault and homicide,

• Prohibit the transportation of unaccompanied minors, unless they are part of an authorized family account,

• Require food and beverages offered during a ride to be factory-sealed,

• Educate drivers on new safety policies,

• Prevent crimes against drivers by riders, and

• Do not allow the collection of any rider or driver biometric data. 

More than 15,500 Uber and Lyft riders and drivers were sexually assaulted between 2017 and 2022. This number only represents the number of sexual assaults that were reported. On average, only 30 percent of sexual assaults are reported. 

Countless instances of sexual assault have happened in Ubers and Lyfts in Colorado, including a former Denver Lyft driver sentenced to 290 years in prison last year for charges related to kidnapping, sexual assault, and attempted sexual assault of more than a dozen women over four years. 
In 2024, an Aurora Lyft driver was sentenced to nine years in prison for sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl. Last month, an Arvada Uber driver was arrested on suspicion of sexual assault against a passenger. Arvada police believe there are likely more victims in this case, as the driver used multiple vehicles over his more than 1,000 rides.

HB26-1424 now moves to the Senate floor for further consideration. Track its progress here.