Hawaii-2015-SB200-Introduced

SECTION 1. The purpose of this Act is to authorize the counties to regulate transportation network companies by establishing rules for their operation.

SECTION 2. Section 46-16.5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:

"(a) The legislature finds and declares the following:

(1) The orderly regulation of vehicular traffic on the streets and highways of Hawaii is essential to the welfare of the State and its people;

(2) Privately-operated public passenger vehicle service provides vital transportation links within the State. Public passenger vehicle service operated in the counties enables the State to provide the benefits of privately-operated, demand-responsive transportation services to its people and to persons who travel to the State for business or tourist purposes;

(3) The economic viability and stability of privately-operated public passenger vehicle service is consequently a matter of statewide importance;

(4) The policy of the State is to promote safe and reliable privately-operated public passenger vehicle service to provide the benefits of that service. In furtherance of this policy, the legislature recognizes and affirms that the regulation of privately-operated public passenger vehicle service is an essential governmental function;

(5) The policy of the State is to require that counties regulate privately-operated public passenger vehicle service and not subject a county or its officers to liability under the federal antitrust laws;

(6) The policy of the State is to further promote privately-operated public passenger vehicle service, including but not limited to, the picking up and discharge of passengers from various unrelated locations by taxicabs; [~~and~~]

(7) The policy of the State is to further promote privately-operated public passenger vehicle service by requiring jitney services not regulated by the counties to be under the jurisdiction of the public utilities commission. For the purposes of this paragraph, "jitney services" means public transportation services utilizing motor vehicles that have seating accommodations for six to twenty-five passengers, operate along specific routes during defined service hours, and levy a flat fare schedule[.]; and

(8) The policy of the State is to further promote privately-operated public passenger vehicle service, including but not limited to, the picking up and discharge of passengers from various unrelated locations by transportation network company services. For the purposes of this paragraph:

"Transportation network company" means an entity operating in the State that uses a digital network or software application service to connect passengers to transportation network company services provided by transportation network company drivers. A transportation network company is not deemed to own, control, operate, or manage the vehicles used by its drivers, and is not a taxicab association or a for-hire vehicle owner.

"Transportation network company driver" means a person who operates a motor vehicle that is owned, leased, or otherwise authorized for use by the person; not a taxicab or for-hire public passenger vehicle; and used to provide transportation network company services.

"Transportation network company services" means transportation of a passenger between points chosen by the passenger and prearranged with a transportation network company driver through the use of a transportation network company digital network or software application. Transportation network company services shall begin when a transportation network company driver accepts a request for transportation received through the transportation network company's digital network or software application service, continue while the transportation network company driver transports the passenger in the driver's vehicle, and end when the passenger exits the driver's vehicle. Transportation network company service is not a taxicab, for-hire vehicle, or street hail service."

SECTION 3. Section 271-5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§271-5 Exemptions, generally. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, its contents shall not apply to:

(1) Persons transporting their own property where the transportation is in furtherance of a primary business purpose or enterprise of that person, except where the transportation is undertaken by a motor carrier to evade the regulatory purposes of this chapter;

(2) Persons operating motor vehicles when engaged in the transportation of school children and teachers to and from school, and to and from school functions; provided that these persons may engage in providing transportation at special rates for groups of persons belonging to an eleemosynary or benevolent organization or association domiciled in this State where the organization or association sponsors or is conducting a nonregular excursion; provided that whenever the persons engage in the transportation of persons other than those exempted in this paragraph, that portion of their operation shall not be exempt from this chapter. Nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to authorize any person to engage in the transportation of persons, other than the transportation of persons exempted by the terms of this paragraph, without a permit or certificate issued by the commission authorizing such transportation;

(3) Persons operating taxicabs or other motor vehicles utilized in performing a bona fide taxicab service. "Taxicab" includes:

(A) Any motor vehicle used in the movement of passengers on the public highways under the following circumstances, namely the passenger hires the vehicle on call or at a fixed stand, with or without baggage for transportation, and controls the vehicle to the passenger's destination;

(B) Any motor vehicle for hire having seating accommodations for eight or fewer passengers used in the movement of passengers on the public highways that may, as part of a continuous trip, pick up or discharge passengers from various unrelated locations; provided that they shall be regulated by the counties in accordance with section 46-16.5(c); and provided further that this subparagraph shall not apply to any exclusive rights granted by the department of transportation for taxicab services at facilities under the department's control; and

(C) Any motor vehicle having seating accommodations for eight or fewer passengers used in the movement of passengers on the public highways between a terminal, i.e., a fixed stand, in the Honolulu district, as defined in section 4-1 and a terminal in a geographical district outside the limits of the Honolulu district, and vice versa, without picking up passengers other than at the terminals or fixed stands; provided that the passengers may be picked up by telephone call from their homes in the rural area or may be unloaded at any point between the fixed stands or may be delivered to their homes in the rural area;

(4) Persons operating motor vehicles in the transportation of persons pursuant to a franchise from the legislature and whose operations are presently regulated under chapter 269;

(5) Nonprofit agricultural cooperative associations to the extent that they engage in the transportation of their own property or the property of their members;

(6) Persons operating motor vehicles specially constructed for the towing of disabled or wrecked vehicles but not otherwise used in the transportation of property for compensation or hire;

(7) Persons operating motor vehicles in the transportation of mail, newspapers, periodicals, magazines, messages, documents, letters, or blueprints;

(8) Persons operating funeral cars or ambulances;

(9) Persons operating motor vehicles in the transportation of garbage or refuse;

(10) Persons operating the type of passenger carrying motor vehicles known as "sampan buses" within the radius of twenty miles from the city of Hilo, Hawaii;

(11) Persons transporting unprocessed pineapple to a cannery, seed corn to a processing facility, or returning any containers used in such transportation to the fields;

(12) Sugar plantations transporting sugarcane, raw sugar, molasses, sugar by-products, and farming supplies for neighboring farmers pursuant to contracts administered by the United States Department of Agriculture;

(13) Persons engaged in the ranching or meat or feed business who transport cattle to slaughterhouses for hire where such transportation is their sole transportation for hire and where their earnings from the transportation constitute less than fifty per cent of their gross income from their business and the transportation for hire;

(14) Persons transporting unprocessed raw milk to processing plants and returning any containers used in such transportation to dairy farms for reloading;

(15) Persons transporting animal feeds to animal husbandry farmers and farming supplies directly to animal husbandry farmers and returning any containers used in such transportation to these sources of such feeds and supplies for reloading;

(16) Persons engaged in transporting not more than fifteen passengers between their places of abode, or termini near such places, and their places of employment in a single daily round trip where the driver is also on the driver's way to or from the driver's place of employment;

(17) Persons transporting passengers without charge in motor vehicles owned or operated by such person, where such transportation is provided in conjunction with and in furtherance of a related primary business purpose or enterprise of that person, and such transportation is provided only directly to and from the place of business of such person, except that this exemption shall not apply to persons making any contract, agreement, or arrangement to provide, procure, furnish, or arrange for transportation as a travel agent or broker or a person engaged in tour or sightseeing activities, nor shall this exemption apply where the transportation is undertaken by a person to evade the regulatory purposes of this chapter; [~~and~~]

(18) Persons conducting the type of county-regulated passenger carrying operation known as "jitney services". For the purposes of this paragraph, "jitney services" means public transportation services utilizing motor vehicles that have seating accommodations for six to twenty-five passengers, operate along specific routes during defined service hours, and levy a flat fare schedule[.]; and

(19) Persons engaged in transportation network company services as defined under section 46-16.5; provided that they shall be regulated by the counties in accordance with section 46-16.5(c)."

SECTION 4. Counties authorizing transportation network company operations shall establish rules regulating such operations. These rules shall include but not be limited to required national criminal history background checks for transportation network company drivers and required automobile liability insurance. No transportation network company shall operate in any county until after the county has established such rules.

SECTION 5. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	200
TWENTY-EIGHTH LEGISLATURE, 2015
STATE OF HAWAII