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After weeks of debate over the potential risks of app-based ride companies, the L.A. City Council approved a policy that would allow Uber and Lyft to apply for permits to pick up passengers at Los Angeles International Aiport, a service they’re currently barred from providing.
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The City Council agreed Tuesday to ask the California Public Utilities Commission, the state agency that regulates Uber and Lyft, to add fingerprinting as a part of the required background check process for all for-hire drivers, including those operating limousines, shuttles and ride-hail cars.
And in a last-minute amendment, council members instructed the city attorney to explore the city’s legal authority to require fingerprint background checks for ride-hailing services if state regulators fail to act.
The last remaining hurdle will be finalizing the contracts between the companies and the city.
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Concerns intensified last week when the top prosecutors for Los Angeles and San Francisco said they had found 25 California
Uber drivers with serious criminal records, including murder, assault and driving under the influence.
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Airport officials have said that Uber and Lyft operate less like taxi services and more like shuttle or limousine companies, whose drivers do not undergo background checks to work at LAX.