Uber is suing the village of Skokie to problem a tax on ride-hailing companies just lately handed by the village.
The four-count swimsuit, filed Wednesday in Cook County Circuit Court, claims Skokie’s tax violates the Illinois structure and asks the court docket to dam the village from amassing it.
”We all the time look to work constructively with the cities we serve, and suing Skokie was a final resort,” Uber spokeswoman Kelley Quinn wrote in a press release. “While we believe Skokie’s fees run against well-established Illinois law, our hope is that we can work with Springfield on legislation that raises revenue in a way that makes sense for the state and the industry.”
Earlier this yr, Skokie handed an ordinance which might impose a tax of 15 cents for shared rides and 35 cents for particular person rides on any “Transportation Network Company,” outlined as an “entity operation in the State of Illinois that uses a digital network or software application service to connect passengers to transportation network company services provided by transportation network company drivers.”
The ordinance claimed the tax is supposed to pay for the impression ride-hailing enterprise have on Skokie’s roads, site visitors and infrastructure.
The tax went into impact Wednesday, the identical day the swimsuit was filed, based on the swimsuit.
Uber claims the ordinance violates the state structure by imposing a tax on a particular occupation. The firm additionally claims the tax extends past the village’s jurisdiction, because it may apply to rides that begin or finish exterior of Skokie.
The swimsuit additionally argues the ordinance “taxes in an arbitrary and discriminatory manner.”
Skokie spokeswoman Ann Tennes mentioned the village has not been served and declined to remark Wednesday night.
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot just lately unveiled a plan to extend charges for solo passengers on ride-hailing companies, with an emphasis on these using alone downtown. A spokesperson for Uber mentioned a optimistic ruling within the Skokie case will probably impression Chicago.