De Blasio's Campaign Was Uber Cool with E-Hails

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio may be keen to cap Uber and its competitors, but in 2013 he dropped campaign capital on the app-based car service. 

De Blasio’s 2013 campaign spent $1,643 using Uber 52 times and spent $11,652.63 taking another company that offers e-hails—Legend Car Service—291 times, campaign finance records show.

A spokesman for the mayor’s campaign said de Blasio did not personally take any of the Uber rides.

De Blasio has provoked a debate over the politics and policies governing car services by pushing a limit on how much Uber and its competitors can increase their vehicle fleets. The mayor argues the e-hail sector’s growth has clogged downtown Manhattan streets and could pose environmental hazards, which should be examined.

The City Council was expected to vote on two bills—one that would curb app-based car services’ growth, and a second that would launch a yearlong study of the impacts of the industry’s expansion—as early as Thursday, but a deal was struck today postponing any votes on the initiative for four months. 

Uber is fighting the legislation, and has highlighted the fact that taxi medallion owners contributed significantly to de Blasio’s mayoral campaign committee. The company has also launched a so-called de Blasio feature that shows app users how the cap would purportedly delay service.