BILL NUMBER: S4688
SPONSOR: CLEARE
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to requiring
batteries for bicycles with electric assist and electric scooters to be
tested and approved by certain testing laboratories
 
PURPOSE:
Requires batteries for bicycles with electric assist and electric scoot-
ers to be tested and approved by and contain the seal of the Underwrit-
ers Laboratories.
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends section 1242 of the vehicle and traffic law, requiring
that every e-bike and e-scooter shall be equipped with a battery that
has been tested and approved by and that contains the seal of the Under-
writers Laboratories, any testing laboratories that is an International
Organization for Standardization and International Electrotechnical
Commission Accredited Independent Testing Laboratory, or participates in
the United States Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health
Administration Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory.
Section 2 amends section 1285 of the vehicle and traffic law to requir-
ing every e-bike and e-scooter shall be equipped with a battery that has
been tested and approved by and that contains the seal of the same
organizations as mentioned above.
Section 3 sets the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
There has been significant news coverage in recent years regarding fires
that were started due to an e-bike or an electric scooter overheating
during the charging process.
Most of these vehicles use lithium-ion batteries, which are prone to
overheating due to their density. If someone is using a cheap or faulty
battery, the risk of overheating and starting a fire increases.
The Underwriters Laboratories is a "Nationally Recognized Testing Labo-
ratory", as determined by OSHA. They are experts in testing and ensuring
the safety of battery devices. By ensuring that batteries are thoroughly
tested by an accredited organization, this has the potential to reduce
the number of damaging and deadly fires that were started due to elec-
tric vehicle charging.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
TBD.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

Statutes affected:
S4688: 1242 vehicle and traffic law, 1285 vehicle and traffic law