How TLC Makes Rules and How Drivers Can Speak Up

In short: a TLC rule goes through five steps: TLC publishes a proposal with a notice, the public comments in writing and at a public hearing, the Board of Commissioners votes at a public meeting, and the rule takes effect on a set date. Anyone can comment: by email to tlcrules@tlc.nyc.gov, online at nyc.gov/nycrules, by mail or fax, or by speaking for three minutes at the hearing if you sign up by 5pm the day before.

TLC rules shape a driver's work every day, and drivers can take part in making them. This page explains the process in plain terms and shows how to get your voice into the record. It is based on TLC's own rule notices, its 2025 Annual Report and its Commission Meetings page, read on October 12, 2026.

Who makes the rules

TLC was created by Local Law 12 of 1971 and is required by the City Charter. Its decisions on rules are made by the Board of Commissioners:

• Nine members, eight of them unsalaried. The Chair leads the Board and runs the agency day to day.
• Appointed by the Mayor with the advice and consent of the City Council, each for a seven-year term.
• One seat for each borough: the borough's City Council members recommend a person by majority vote.
• The 2025 Annual Report noted one vacant seat.

TLC says the Commissioners vote on base license applications, hear public testimony on proposed rules, and vote on proposed rules and pilot programs. At least five Commissioners must be present for a vote. Meetings are open to the public and announced at least a week in advance; transcripts and videos are posted afterward.

TLC's power to make rules comes from sections 1043 and 2303 of the City Charter and section 19-503 of the Administrative Code, as its notices state. The rules themselves are in Title 35 of the Rules of the City of New York (35 RCNY); for drivers, that is mostly chapter 80. Section 1043 of the Charter sets the steps every city agency must follow.

Rulemaking steps

A real example: the 2025 driver pay rule

The NYC Rules page for the HV driver pay rule shows the full path. The proposal had a public hearing on February 5, 2025; the comment deadline was extended to March 5, 2025; the page lists 520 online comments. The Commission voted on June 25, 2025, and the rule, including the new lockout protections, took effect August 1, 2025. A follow-up amendment was voted on September 17, 2025 and took effect September 22, with a "statement of substantial need for earlier implementation" that let it start sooner than usual.

The newest example at the time of writing: a package to cut driver fees and fines was proposed for a hearing on August 13, 2026, with a vote posted for September 17, 2026. See TLC rule changes in 2026 for its status.

Where proposals are posted

• TLC's Proposed Rules & Pilot Programs page: every notice of hearing and every package sent for a vote, newest first.
• NYC Rules (nyc.gov/nycrules): the city-wide site, where you can read and submit comments and, a few days after the hearing, read others' comments.
• TLC's Newly Passed Rules page: what has been adopted.
• TLC's regulatory agenda: the August 2026 notice, for example, says the proposal was included in TLC's regulatory agenda for fiscal year 2027.

Testifying and written comments

A useful comment is specific. "This rule is unfair" gives TLC nothing to act on. "Section X would cost me $Y a week because Z; please change it to W" does. Real numbers from your own pay statements or receipts help, and if you are speaking for a group of drivers, say so.

Do comments change anything?

They can. The adopted Accessible E-Hail rules (voted March 26, 2025) include a section explaining what TLC changed "in response to comments received during the comment period." After the January 22, 2025 hearing, TLC set stricter service standards for the call center riders use to book accessible taxis, which disability advocates and the Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities had asked for. It also kept the old Accessible Dispatch rules in place for a period so both programs could run together during the switch, and narrowed one duty for technology providers at the request of Curb and Creative Mobile Technologies. Comments from the people affected shaped the final text.

Not every change goes through rulemaking

Some changes happen automatically under rules already adopted:

• Annual pay updates. Uber and Lyft minimum pay rates adjust each year by inflation under rule 59D-22(a)(4); TLC announces the new rates by industry notice (for 2026, Notice 26-03).
• FHV license reviews. Under rule 59A-06(a)(1), TLC reviews FHV license numbers on a regular cycle; the February 2026 review kept the cap.
• Pilot programs. The Commission can approve pilots by resolution under rule 52-27(a), as it did for the ATLAS accessible-taxi loan pilot.
• City Council laws. The Council can pass local laws that TLC must then put into rules, such as Local Law 90 of 2025 (PIP coverage) and Local Law 78 of 2025 (cyclist decals).

Mistakes that cost drivers money or points

• Treating a proposal as law. It can change or fail at the vote.
• Missing the sign-up deadline to speak, then showing up on the day.
• Commenting after the deadline. Each notice sets a written-comment deadline (for August 2026, the hearing date); send yours before it.
• Arguing a summons at a rule hearing. A hearing on a proposed rule can't decide your case; that happens at OATH.

Where to go next

Track what changed in TLC rule changes in 2025. To bring data to your comment, see TLC open data lookups and who drives NYC TLC vehicles. Examples of rule questions drivers raise: do I need English for a TLC license, why did I lose my place in the airport queue, a street hail livery (chapter 82) rule such as 82-16(j)(1), and what it means to reschedule a hearing. More on the driver rights hub.