Effective 01 Jan 2005, see footnote

67.1808. Powers of the commission. — The regional taxicab commission is empowered to:

(1) Develop and implement plans, policies, and programs to improve the quality of taxicab service within the district;

(2) Cooperate and collaborate with the hotel and restaurant industry to:

(a) Restrict the activities of those doormen employed by hotels and restaurants who accept payment from taxicab drivers or taxicab companies in exchange for the doormen's assistance in obtaining passengers for such taxicab drivers and companies; and

(b) Obtain the adherence of hotel shuttle vehicles to the requirement that they operate solely on scheduled trips between fixed termini and shall have authority to create guidelines for hotel and commercial shuttles;

(3) Cooperate and collaborate with other governmental entities, including the government of the United States, this state, and political subdivisions of this and other states;

(4) Cooperate and collaborate with governmental entities whose boundaries adjoin those of the district to assure that any taxicab or taxicab company neither licensed by the commission nor officed within its boundaries shall nonetheless be subject to those aspects of the taxicab code applicable to taxicabs operating within the district's boundaries;

(5) Contract with any public or private agency, individual, partnership, association, corporation or other entity, consistent with law, for the provision of services necessary to improve the quality of taxicab service within the district;

(6) Accept grants and donations from public or private entities for the purpose of improving the quality of taxicab service within the district;

(7) Execute contracts, sue, and be sued;

(8) Adopt a taxicab code to license and regulate taxicab companies and individual taxicabs within the district consistent with existing ordinances, and to provide for the enforcement of such code for the purpose of improving the quality of taxicab service within the district;

(9) Collect reasonable fees in an amount sufficient to fund the commission's licensing, regulatory, inspection, and enforcement functions; except that, fees charged to entities regulated by the city or county prior to August 28, 2004, shall not exceed three times those amounts charged by such city or county in the first three years of the commission's operation, nor shall said fees exceed four times those amounts for the next three years and for subsequent years, the fees may be adjusted annually based on the rate of inflation according to the consumer price index. Previously regulated entities the class of service of which was regulated by both the city and the county may have fees based on the higher of the two fees charged for that class of service;

(10) Establish accounts with appropriate banking institutions, borrow money, buy, sell, or lease property for the necessary functions of the commission; and

(11) Require taxicabs to display special taxicab license plates as provided in chapter 301 in order to operate within the district. If the commission revokes the taxicab license the commission may confiscate such license plates and return them to the director of revenue pursuant to subsection 3 of section 67.1813.

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(L. 2002 H.B. 1041, A.L. 2004 S.B. 1233, et al.)

Effective 1-01-05