Drivers have sent 1,000 petitions to Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., asking him to explain a provision he inserted into the 2006 District Omnibus Budget Authorization, which mandated a transition from a zone to a meter system.

The Fenty administration refers to the line as the “Levin Act.”

According to Justice for Taxis, a coalition of driver groups and advocates, Fenty has used the provision, which includes a part that grants the mayor the power to opt out of the requirement to install a metered system, to claim authority over the functions of the Taxicab Commission and the right to set fare rates.

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