MINNEAPOLIS — Editor’s Note: This video originally aired on March 15, 2024.

Uber and Lyft are ready to drive out of Minneapolis after the city council approved an ordinance Thursday to pay rideshare drivers more. So GOP lawmakers are moving to introduce a bill Monday designed to keep the companies around. 

House Republicans say their bill would block local rideshare regulations to entice Uber and Lyft to stay in the city past their deadline of May 1 by enacting wider-reaching state rules.

“The Minneapolis City Council’s ordinance was intended to help drivers but it will end up doing just the opposite,” Representative Elliot Engen said in a statement. 

To meet minimum wage levels in the city of Minneapolis, the new city ordinance requires rideshare companies to pay rates of $1.40 per mile and 51 cents per minute. The ordinance passed despite Mayor Jacob Frey’s veto and threats from Uber and Lyft that the companies would leave.

In its latest statement, Uber said “We know that by working together with all stakeholders… we can achieve comprehensive statewide legislation.”

It is unclear yet what a compromise would mean.

The Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry released a report March 8 on rider pay and protections, showing that rider pay rates should be within 89 cents to $1.207 per mile to meet minimum wage in the Twin Cities (as compared to the new ordinance’s rate of $1.40 per mile). 

One Twin Cities driver thinks the new rates will end up somewhere between the city and state numbers.

“My opinion, I think the state will possibly pre-empt the city and negotiate with the companies directly,” rideshare driver Joe Pierce said. “And however that negotiation process goes, I think both sides will come to the table and figure out something amicable.” 

Pierce is also optimistic due to similar situations in Seattle and Washington state. Threats to pull out by rideshare providers in those two states ended with Uber and Lyft cutting deals to increase pay and benefits.

“I’ve heard from drivers in Seattle that things are well, they’re going well,” Pierce said. “I’m sure that there has been a drop in demand, just from the elevated rates. That’s, in my opinion, okay for drivers because you’re going to get paid that much more per ride.”  

Download the free KARE 11+ app for Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV and other smart TV platforms to watch more from KARE 11 anytime! The KARE 11+ app includes live streams of all of KARE 11’s newscasts. You’ll also find on-demand replays of newscasts; the latest from KARE 11 Investigates, Breaking the News and the Land of 10,000 Stories; exclusive programs like Verify and HeartThreads; and Minnesota sports talk from our partners at Locked On Minnesota. 

Watch the latest local news from the Twin Cities and across Minnesota in our YouTube playlist: