--- title: HB 339. Motor vehicles; exempt ride share drivers or ride share network services from definition of motor carrier collection: bills id: 2025-2026/hb339 cite_as: HB 339, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb339 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb339.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb339/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70069 date: 2025-05-14 status: passed corpus_version: bills-2026-08-28 license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice. up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb338.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb340.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 1057 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb339.md?full=1 bill_number: HB 339 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: House bill_type: bill status_date: 2025-05-14 last_action: Effective Date 2025-07-01 sponsors: - Rob Leverett - Chuck Efstration - Bruce Williamson - Houston Gaines - Stan Gunter - Demetrius Douglas - Brian Strickland text_version: Enrolled has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB339/2025 upstream_id: 1961012 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - ride share regulation - motor vehicle liability - Uber and Lyft - transportation law - driver background checks --- # HB 339. Motor vehicles; exempt ride share drivers or ride share network services from definition of motor carrier ## Text 25 LC 39 4702S/AP House Bill 339 (AS PASSED HOUSE AND SENATE) By: Representatives Leverett of the 123rd, Efstration of the 104th, Williamson of the 112th, Gaines of the 120th, Gunter of the 8th, and others A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT To amend Article 3 of Chapter 1 of Title 40 of the Official Cod e of Georgia Annotated,1 relating to motor carriers, so as to exempt ride share network services from liability for2 actions of ride share drivers in certain instances; to revise d efinitions; to provide for3 conforming changes; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other4 purposes.5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:6 SECTION 1.7 Article 3 of Chapter 1 of Title 40 of the Official Code of Geor gia Annotated, relating to8 motor carriers, is amended in Code Section 40-1-100, relating t o definitions relative to9 certification of motor carriers, by revising paragraphs (6) and (12) as follows:10 "(6) 'Elderly or disabled passenger' means an individual over the age of 60 years or who,11 by reason of illness, injury, age, congenital malfunction, or other permanent or temporary12 incapacity or disability, is unable to utilize mass transportation facilities as effectively as13 an individual who is not so affected. 'Department' means the Department of Public14 Safety."15 H. B. 339 - 1 - 25 LC 39 4702S/AP "(12) 'Motor carrier' means:16 (A) Every person owning, controlling, operating, or managing a ny motor vehicle,17 including the lessees, receivers, or trustees of such persons or receivers appointed by18 any court, used in the business of transporting for hire person s, household goods, or19 property or engaged in the activity of nonconsensual towing pur suant to Code20 Section 44-1-13 for hire over any public highway in this state.21 (B) Except as otherwise provided in this subparagraph, the ter m 'motor carrier' such22 term shall not include:23 (i) Motor vehicles engaged solely in transporting school children and teachers to and24 from public schools and private schools;25 (ii) Taxicabs which operate within the corporate limits of mun icipalities and are26 subject to regulation by the governing authorities of such muni cipalities; the27 provisions of this division notwithstanding, vehicles and the drivers thereof operating28 within the corporate limits of any city shall be subject to the safety regulations29 adopted by the commissioner of public safety pursuant to Code Section 40-1-8;30 (iii) Limousine carriers as provided for in Part 3 of this article;31 (iv) Hotel passenger or baggage motor vehicles when used exclu sively for patrons32 and employees of such hotel;33 (v) Motor vehicles operated not for profit with a capacity of 15 persons or less when34 they are used exclusively to transport elderly and or disabled passengers or employees35 under a corporate sponsored vanpool program, except that a vehi cle owned by the36 driver may be operated for profit when such driver is traveling to and from his or her37 place of work, provided each such vehicle carrying more than ni ne passengers38 maintains liability insurance in an amount of not less than $100,000.00 per person and39 $300,000.00 per accident and $50,000.00 property damage. For the purposes of this40 part, elderly and disabled passengers are defined as individual s over the age of 6041 years or who, by reason of illness, injury, age, congenital mal function, or other42 H. B. 339 - 2 - 25 LC 39 4702S/AP permanent or temporary incapacity or disability, are unable to utilize mass43 transportation facilities as effectively as persons who are not so affected;44 (vi) Motor vehicles owned and operated exclusively by the United States government45 or by this state or any subdivision thereof;46 (vii) Vehicles, owned or operated by the federal or state gove rnment or by any47 agency, instrumentality, or political subdivision of the federal or state government,48 or privately owned and operated for profit or not for profit, capable of transporting not49 more than ten persons for hire when such vehicles are used exclusively to transport50 persons who are elderly, disabled, elderly or disabled passengers en route to receive51 medical care or prescription medication, or returning after receiving medical care or52 prescription medication. For the purpose of this part, elderly and disabled persons53 shall have the same meaning as in division (v) of this subparagraph; or54 (viii) Ambulances."55 SECTION 2.56 Said article is further amended by adding a new Code section to read as follows:57 "40-1-201.58 (a) No ride share network service shall be liable under any theory of liability, including,59 but not limited to, vicarious or product liability, for any inj ury to persons or damage to60 property from the operation of a personal passenger car by a ride share driver by reason of61 owning, operating, or maintaining a digital network or internet network to connect62 passengers to ride share drivers for the purpose of prearranged transportation for hire or for63 donation, provided that:64 (1) There has been no negligence or criminal misconduct by the ride share network65 service;66 H. B. 339 - 3 - 25 LC 39 4702S/AP (2) The ride share network service is in compliance with the r equirements of this part67 relating to obligations to a ride share driver and any other provision otherwise required68 by law; and69 (3) The ride share network service conducts or causes to condu cted a criminal70 background check or obtains a private background check certific ation as described in71 Code Section 40-5-39 for each ride share driver at least once every two years.72 (b) Any digital network or internet network used by a ride share network service shall be73 considered a service and shall not qualify as a product."74 SECTION 3.75 All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.76 H. B. 339 - 4 - ## Summaries written by Georgia Commons The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the bill. Quote the text, not the summary. House Bill 339 would shield ride share companies like Uber and Lyft from most lawsuits over crashes caused by their drivers, as long as the company follows background check and other legal requirements. ### Plain-language summary Georgia law currently regulates most for-hire transportation businesses as 'motor carriers' under a set of rules in Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia. This bill leaves the general motor carrier definition largely intact but adds a new legal protection specifically for ride share network services, the companies that run apps connecting passengers with drivers. The bill adds a new Code section stating that a ride share network service cannot be held liable, under any legal theory including vicarious liability or product liability, for injuries or property damage caused by a ride share driver operating a personal car. This protection applies only if the company itself was not negligent or criminally at fault, followed its legal obligations to drivers, and conducted or obtained a criminal background check on the driver at least once every two years. The bill also makes small wording updates to existing definitions in the motor carrier law and repeals any conflicting laws. ### What it does - Adds a new law (O.C.G.A. § 40-1-201) that protects ride share network services from most lawsuits over injuries or property damage caused by ride share drivers using their personal cars. - Conditions that legal protection on the company not being negligent or criminally at fault itself. - Requires ride share companies to have conducted or obtained a criminal background check on each driver at least once every two years to keep the protection. - Clarifies that the digital app or network a ride share company runs counts legally as a 'service' rather than a 'product', which affects what kinds of lawsuits can be brought against it. - Makes minor wording revisions to existing definitions of 'elderly or disabled passenger' and adds a definition for 'Department' meaning the Department of Public Safety, within the motor carrier law. ### Who it affects Ride share companies such as Uber and Lyft, the drivers who work through those apps, and passengers who ride in ride share vehicles. It also touches anyone injured in a crash involving a ride share driver, since the bill limits who can be sued. ### Why it matters If someone is hurt in a crash involving a ride share driver, this bill would make it harder to sue the ride share company itself, shifting legal responsibility more toward the driver, as long as the company met its background check and compliance duties under the law. ### Key provisions - Section 1 revises definitions in O.C.G.A. § 40-1-100, updating the 'elderly or disabled passenger' definition and adding a definition of 'Department' as the Department of Public Safety. - Section 2 creates new Code Section 40-1-201, exempting ride share network services from liability for injuries or property damage caused by ride share drivers, subject to three conditions. - The liability exemption requires no negligence or criminal misconduct by the company, compliance with other legal requirements for ride share drivers, and a criminal background check every two years. - Section 2 also states that a ride share company's digital or internet network is legally a 'service,' not a 'product,' affecting product liability claims. - Section 3 repeals any existing laws that conflict with this Act. ## Status - Status: Passed (2025-05-14) - Last action: Effective Date 2025-07-01 (2025-05-14) - Sponsors: Rob Leverett, Chuck Efstration, Bruce Williamson, Houston Gaines, Stan Gunter, Demetrius Douglas, Brian Strickland - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70069 > The history, votes, and amendments (1,057 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb339.md?full=1