— Dozens of Raleigh taxi cab drivers complained Tuesday about new liability insurance requirements that they say could put many of them out of business.

The requirements are part of a state law that passed on the last day of the legislative session in June and will go into effect on Oct. 1.

Lee Churchill, who has been driving a cab for more than 40 years, said neither she nor her colleagues knew anything about the new requirements until recent days, and they're upset state legislators made no effort to get input from them about the proposed changes before passing them into law.

A provision updating the liability coverage for taxis from $30,000 to $100,000 for the bodily injury or death of one person, from $60,000 to $300,000 for injury or death to two or more people and from $25,000 to $50,000 for property damage was tacked onto an unrelated House bill on June 28 by Senate Majority Leader Harry Brown. The amended bill cleared the legislature the following day and was signed into law three weeks later.

Churchill said the higher coverages will likely triple her monthly premiums.

"We had no chance or opportunity to address the legislative body concerning this issue," she said. "I think this is a situation where little, independent minority business people are being targeted. ... The taxi cab industry is about 98 (percent) a minority business, and I really feel the little man is being forced out of their livelihood."

Rep. Mark Brody, R-Union, who sponsored the original House bill, said no one is being targeted by the changes.

"This is a blanket increase. So, everybody has to pay it whether you’re the big guy or the little guy," Brody said, noting that the liability coverage limits hadn't been adjusted in decades.

Two years ago, lawmakers passed insurance regulations for ride-sharing services such as Uber and Lyft, but their liability limits are only a third to a half of what soon will be required for cab drivers. Ride-sharing companies have to carry $50,000 for the bodily injury or death of one person, $100,000 for injury or death to two or more people and $25,000 for property damage.

"It’s hard for me to believe that that increase will put people out of business," Brody said of the cabbies' complaints. "All we’re doing is saying we want to protect the customer. Let the industry then flourish and often the service."

Churchill said she doesn't know how she and other taxi drivers can fight the new requirements, but they plan to try.

"These independent people working so hard to support their family and their children being forced out of their livelihoods," she said. "Everybody has a right to work an honest living, and we’re working that honest living – and we’re paying for it."

Brody said that, as with any new legislation, if the changes produce some unwanted consequences, lawmakers could tweak the insurance requirements next year.