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NJ.com article on Smith bill to protect ride share passengers'Last-minute congressional blitz clears bill named for N.J. woman killed by fake Uber driver'Jonathan D. Salant | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com Just before going home for Christmas, Congress cleared legislation spurred by the murder of a New Jersey woman that would require a comprehensive study of the ride-sharing industry. The last-minute maneuvering saw the U.S. Senate unanimously pass the measure, known as Sami’s Law, without debate late Thursday night as lawmakers left for the holidays. Then the U.S. House cleared the legislation, also without debate, just before completing action on the $1.7 trillion spending bill funding the federal government through Sept. 30, 2023.
The legislation was named for Samantha Josephson of Robbinsville. Josephson, 21, a senior at the University of South Carolina, was killed in 2019 after getting into a car she thought was her Uber. The driver, Nathaniel Rowland, was convicted of murder in 2021. “It was always about making Uber and Lyft and all of the other rideshares safer,” said the bill’s chief sponsor, Rep. Chris Smith, R-4th Dist. “You can take to the bank it’s young women who are vulnerable to these horrific predators. It’s a matter of mitigating risk.”
Marci and Seymour Josephson meet with Rep. Chris Smith in his Washington office on May 8, 2019. Smith sponsored legislation named for their late daughter, who was killed when she got into a car she thought was her Uber.
Because final passage of the legislation was part of a Democratic procedural motion, Smith wound up voting no, as did every other House Republican. The Josephsons made several trips to Washington, meeting with lawmakers in an effort to see the bill become law. Smith scaled back the proposal more than once in an attempt to overcome opposition.
Before winning initial House approval less than 10 days ago, Smith dropped a provisions from his original bill requiring ride-sharing vehicles to have digital verification systems matching the passenger with the driver and setting up a 15-member advisory council to review safety standards.
To get to final passage, he also dropped the section banning businesses from selling Uber and Lyft signs unless authorized to do so by the companies.
What was left was a study by the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress, on the incidence of assault and abuse of both ride-sharing passengers and drivers, the quality of the background checks of drivers and of laws that requiring such examinations, and the safety steps already taken by ride-sharing companies, taxis and other for-hire vehicles.
“I don’t use the word ‘disappointed’ in this job any more,” he said. “You get what you can to make a difference and this will make a difference.”
In a statement, Uber said:
“Our work on safety is never done, and we look forward to continuing to work with policymakers and safety experts on solutions that help improve ride share safety. We continuously invest in new technology and partner with leading safety organizations, including our in-app emergency button and 24/7 live support from ADT Safety Agents, on top of our core safety experience where every trip is GPS tracked, drivers must pass a background check, and riders are given the make, model, license plate, and driver name to verify their trip before getting into the vehicle.” Lyft has said in the past that it also has taken steps to improve safety. The company did not immediately respond to requests for comment Friday.
The two ride-sharing companies spent $2.7 million to lobby the federal government during the first nine month of 2022, according to the research group OpenSecrets.
Uber’s own reports found 9,805 allegations of serious sexual assault by its drivers from 2017 to 2020, and 39 people killed during or soon after a ride, Smith said. Lyft found 4,158 allegations of sexual assault from 2017 to 2019, he said.
Smith said the GAO study by itself will be significant, and said he and the Josephsons planned to meet with the agency before it begins its work.
“It’s going to wake up America when this study gets done about the vulnerabilities, particularly for women,” Smith said. “You can’t fight something if you don’t chronicle it.”
Gov. Phil Murphy signed a state law named for Sami Josephson in 2019 that required illuminated signs and digital barcodes on ride-sharing vehicles.
Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com.
This article was published online on Dec. 23 at 9:06 p.m. and on page 1 of the Dec. 27can be found online at: https://www.nj.com/politics/2022/12/last-minute-congressional-blitz-clears-bill-named-for-nj-woman-killed-by-fake-uber-driver.html |
