Rideshare giants Uber and Lyft say they aren’t bluffing about leaving Minneapolis and the surrounding metro area if the city’s ordinance on driver pay goes into effect.

May 1 is when the measure will take effect, meaning the potential for a rideshare crisis grows with each passing day.

“Establishing protection and better pay for drivers in the rideshare world. Here we go again,” Rep. Hodan Hassan (DFL-Minneapolis) said.

State lawmakers have been working on a bill to create statewide standards and pay for rideshare drivers — largely following recommendations from the state rideshare task force — and continue to do so. However, the clock is ticking.

“That task force came up with 24 consensus-negotiated recommendations. Uber supports all 24 of them,” Joel Carlson, with Uber, said.

However, one major item that still needs to be negotiated is driver pay, something that the task force provided a lot of data about but no recommendations.

“I think we want to support legislation at the end of the day that’s good for drivers and good for riders,” Lyft’s John Reich said.

Republicans in the Minnesota House of Representatives say the Legislature should act to preempt the rideshare ordinance in Minneapolis.

“If they want to negotiate higher compensation, go ahead and do it. But why do we have to do it under this deadline of May 1st with Uber and Lyft shutting down?” Rep. Pat Garofalo (R-Farmington) questioned. “No one benefits from this.”

Garofalo warned of consequences if DFL lawmakers don’t act.

“Our DFL politicians getting thrown out on their fanny next November because they sat around and goofed around while Uber and Lyft were taken away from people,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Minneapolis City Council still has a chance to make its own changes at a meeting next week, even if the Legislature doesn’t act.