“Biggest lobbying operation I've seen for a long time. They started early and worked hard.”

That's how William Miller, a longtime Austin lobbyist who represents the City of Houston, characterized the lawyers and consultants tapped by Uber and Lyft for this Texas legislative session.

The ride-hailing companies' army of some 40 lobbyists succeeded this week in getting the Texas House of Representatives to approve by a 110-37 vote a bill placing transportation network companies under state control and barring cities from enacting their own regulations.