Judge weighs argument that Nevada law protects limousine monopolies

Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2000 | 11:26 a.m.

A Clark County District Court judge is weighing arguments on the constitutionality of Nevada's limousine licensing laws.

Judge Ron Parraguirre said Monday he expects to rule within two weeks on motions for summary judgment on a two-year-old case involving several independent limousine drivers who say the state's limo laws foster monopolies.

Limousine drivers William Clutter, Edward Wheeler and John West and the Independent Limousine Owners/Operators Association through attorneys for the Washington, D.C.-based Institute for Justice say it is unconstitutional for the state to require companies to prove that their business will not adversely affect existing companies in order to get a license.

They also are challenging the constitutionality of a requirement that a license applicant be financially fit for licensure.

In a suit filed in May 1998, the limousine drivers also say the Transportation Services Authority, which regulates the limo industry, violates due process by having separate divisions issue citations for unlicensed companies, prosecute the citations, adjudicate them, then collect the fines, which finance further enforcement actions.

Clutter, who was fined $5,000 and had his limousine impounded for operating without a TSA certificate, and West, who lost a TSA appeal for licensure in April after initially applying in 1997, are being represented by the Institute for Justice, which takes on free-market legal cases nationwide.

West was turned down for certification because the TSA said he was not financially fit to operate a limousine company. That case was delayed for several months while the TSA sought financial information from West, who was reluctant to give it up because it meant also turning it over to competitors.

The Clutter and West cases have received national attention over alleged monopolistic practices in the limousine industry in Las Vegas. Critics have included Washington-based national columnist George Will.

Charlotte Matanane of the Nevada Attorney General's Office said the Institute for Justice's argument challenges the entire administrative structure of the state's regulatory agencies. She said the state is entrusted to regulate areas affecting the economic well-being of the industry.

"The problem," added co-counsel Robert Winter, "is that they (the limousine drivers) just don't like the rules."

Attorneys representing three existing limousine companies also filed briefs in the case. Representatives of Bell Trans, the city's oldest and largest limousine company; Star Limousine, a sister company of Yellow-Checker-Star, the city's largest taxi operator; and Ambassador Limousine filed as intervenors in the case.

The Institute for Justice said the fact they intervened shows that they want to preserve the protectionist stance the state takes on limousine laws.