It is very much so. It's a form of capturing rent. Look at how crazy the taxi companies go to protect this revenue stream. They keep this because they are te

It is very much so. It's a form of capturing rent. Look at how crazy the taxi companies go to protect this revenue stream. They keep this because they are tenacious 1 issue voters. (And in NYC, the current mayor was elected on the basis of unions and 1 issue voters like this) In my view the taxi licenses should be of fixed length. It's ok to say "The roads only allow for 13K (or however many) taxis." It's wrong to give people a lifetime annuity based on it, and create a barrier to entry in the industry. Better to have a fixed term like 5 or 10 years. Long enough that it's worth investing in the business. Short enough that others can enter. And the total # should be flexible, perhaps linked to traffic and population.