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UTW and ALC Propose Medallion Fee to

Benefit Drivers

Now that the Municipal Transportation Agency (MTA) has taken over taxi regulation, its an open field, and Proposition K of 1978 is being viewed as fair game.Several proposals have thus far emerged for ditching Prop K in favor of an auction system that would pit driver against driver in a bidding war for medallions. The auction proceeds would create a windfall for current medallion holders — most of whom got their medallions for the price of an application fee — and raise money for city purposes.United Taxicab Workers, in collaboration with the Asian Law Caucus (ALC), has taken a different approach, one designed to preserve Prop K and provide all drivers with badly needed benefits and protections. The ALC is a legal and civil rights organization serving the low-income Asian and Pacific-American communities. It is actively involved in improving the working lives of cab drivers.The UTW-ALC proposal would keep Proposition K intact. It would place a city rental fee on medallions, the proceeds to be used exclusively for industry purposes.

Rental revenues would serve the following purposes:

• Retirement for medallion holders and non-medallion holders alike. Pension benefits would allow drivers who cannot or should not continue working to retire with dignity. Instead of keeping their medallions for life, as many try to do, medallion holders would pass them on to the next qualified driver on the waiting list.

• Health insurance. Healthier drivers are better and safer drivers. But few drivers can afford their own insurance, and even those who can often have pre-existing conditions that disqualify them. If the federal government enacts a health plan allowing drivers to obtain insurance at a cost affordable to low-income workers, health insurance funding could be reallocated to provide other benefits drivers lack, i.e., dental and disability coverage.

• Funding for enforcement against limousines and others illegally providing taxi services. With sufficient funding, illegal activity can be reduced to a minimum, better protecting the public and providing a big boost to driver income.

The UTW-ALC proposal has been submitted to the MTA and will be discussed along with other proposals at the Town Hall meetings currently in progress.