LAWMAKERS PASS BILL DEFINING UBER DRIVERS AS INDEPENDENT CONTRACTORS

LINCOLN- Nebraska lawmakers passed a bill Monday that would change state law to define app-based ride-share and food delivery drivers as independent contractors, overcoming a filibuster to send the proposed law to Gov. Jim Pillen's desk. Lincoln Sen. Jane Raybould, a Democrat and grocery store executive, joined 32 Republican lawmakers in Nebraska's formally nonpartisan Legislature to end the Democrat-led filibuster and send the bill to Pillen's desk Monday morning.

Sen. Dave Wordekemper, a Republican from Fremont, joined 14 Democrats voting against the bill. Omaha Sen. Megan Hunt, a nonpartisan, was absent. Introduced at the request of a ride-share company by Sen. Bob Hallstrom of Syracuse, the bill (LB229) would make clear that drivers for platforms such as Uber, Lyft, and DoorDash are not employees of the companies.

Ride-share drivers are already considered independent contractors in Nebraska, but Hallstrom's bill codifies that status into law — a status that companies like Uber and Lyft have waged costly ballot campaigns or legal battles to win in some other states.

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