PHOENIX (AP) — The Arizona Attorney General’s Office has filed a special action with the state Supreme Court seeking to overturn the rideshare ordinance at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.
State prosecutors also filed a request Tuesday with Arizona’s high court to stop the fees from going into effect on Feb. 1.
Attorney General Mark Brnovich says a new $4 fee on Uber and Lyft rides to and from the Phoenix airport is “very likely” unconstitutional.
The ride-hailing giants are threatening to abandon the airport service.
Brnovich says the fees approved by the Phoenix City Council probably violated a 2018 ballot measure prohibiting higher taxes on services.
By law, Phoenix could lose its share of state revenue — a third of its general fund budget — if the fee hike is found to be illegal and isn’t repealed by the city.
Lawyers for the city say the higher fees are not taxes on services, but rather permissible charges for businesses to use city-owned Sky Harbor, which is one of the largest U.S. airports serving some 44 million passengers a year.
The city argues the fees are akin to rent and landing fees charged to restaurants and airlines.
Republished with the Permission of the Associated Press.
