It’s back to the drawing board for Sami’s Law.

New Jersey Congressman Chris Smith has reintroduced legislation regulating the ride-share industry, because U.S. Senate members failed to pass a companion bill during the last session of Congress.

“We must establish safety protocols and accountability in the system to protect rideshare customers who remain extremely vulnerable,” Smith, a Mercer County Republican, said Wednesday in a press statement. “As the nation looks to emerge from COVID restrictions, there will likely be a surge in travel and general activities, and thus a corresponding urgency to protect those who rely on Uber and Lyft services.”

Nathaniel David Rowland, 26, is the alleged perpetrator who had kidnapped and murdered 21-year-old Samantha Josephson near the University of South Carolina, where she was a student.

The U.S. House of Representatives last summer passed legislation regulating the ride-share industry in the wake of the March 2019 murder of Robbinsville native Samantha “Sami” Josephson. The U.S. Senate, however, never moved the measure for approval, effectively killing the measure and forcing Smith to reintroduce it for another round of consideration this week.

Following a late-night outing with friends, Josephson summoned an Uber rideshare vehicle but mistakenly entered Rowland’s car, a black Chevrolet Impala, thinking it was her Uber driver.

Hunters in rural Clarendon County found Josephson’s slain body on March 29, 2019, and police later announced the manner of death was homicide, according to South Carolina authorities.

Police arrested Rowland on March 30, 2019, charging him with the murder and kidnapping. He is being held in jail without bond and the criminal case remains pending, according to court records in Richland County, South Carolina.

Smith represents a large swath of Central New Jersey, including Josephson’s hometown of Robbinsville. Operating in a new session of the 117th Congress, Smith on Monday introduced H.R. 1082, aka Sami’s Law, which has bipartisan support.

If both chambers of Congress pass Sami’s Law, and if the measure is signed or enacted into law, it would require transportation network companies like Uber and Lyft and their ride-share drivers to abide by certain measures intended to create a safer environment for ride-share drivers and customers. The bill would also make it harder for those with ill intent from impersonating drivers.

The bipartisan measure would require transportation network companies or TNCs to implement a system and policy that would enable any prospective ride-share passenger to verify the identity of a TNC driver.

The bill would also make it unlawful for any person other than an authorized TNC agent to sell or offer for sale any ride-share illuminated sign featuring the company’s proprietary trademark or logo.

The legislation also calls for the comptroller general of the United States to conduct a study on the “incidence of assault and abuse” inflicted upon ride-share drivers or passengers and to examine incidences of people falsely posing as ride-hailing drivers.

At the state level, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy in 2019 signed legislation requiring rideshare companies to issue additional identification materials to drivers to help passengers correctly identify their vehicle.

This article was published in the print edition of the Feb. 18, 2021 edition of the Trentonian, and can be found online at:
https://www.trentonian.com/news/u-s-rep-chris-smith-reintroduces-sami-s-law-in-new-congress-honoring-slain-robbinsville/article_16942286-7167-11eb-9f3b-a7856e268fa2.html