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CPSC sets an Oct. 21 virtual hearing for oral comment on its proposed e-bike and e-scooter battery safety standard

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Original editorial artwork from the Hugin archive; symbolic illustration, not a depiction of the subject.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission has scheduled a virtual hearing for October 21 so the public can give oral testimony on its proposed mandatory safety standard for lithium-ion batteries used in e-bikes, e-scooters and similar products, a notice on public inspection October 2 and set to publish October 5. The underlying rule, proposed in June, cites 227 incidents tied to these batteries from 2019-2023, including 39 deaths and 181 injuries, by the Commission's own count. Requests to speak are due October 15; written comments already closed in August.

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The Consumer Product Safety Commission has scheduled a virtual hearing for October 21 so the public can give oral testimony on its proposed mandatory safety standard for lithium-ion batteries used in e-bikes, e-scooters and similar products. The hearing notice was filed for public inspection October 2 and is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register on October 5.

What the proposed rule covers

The underlying proposal, published June 24 at 91 FR 38162, would apply to electric bicycles, stand-up and seated electric scooters, self-balancing scooters such as hoverboards, electric skateboards, electric unicycles, and hybrids of these, along with battery packs, chargers and eBike conversion-kit parts sold separately from the vehicle. CPSC says the proposal does not cover children's battery-powered ride-on toys, all-terrain vehicles, golf cars, off-highway utility vehicles, or any product that counts as a motor vehicle under the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's jurisdiction.

What it would require

The proposal would require these products to meet three existing voluntary industry standards — ANSI/CAN/UL 2849 for eBike electrical systems, ANSI/CAN/UL 2272 for other e-mobility devices, and ANSI/CAN/UL/ULC 2271 for the batteries themselves — plus modifications CPSC is proposing to add, including tamper-resistant battery enclosures, a test blocking charging right after a hot discharge, a test against reverse-polarity chargers, and new warning labels, including one against homemade batteries.

Products already owned

The document does not address batteries or micromobility products already in use. As proposed, the rule would apply only to products manufactured after a final rule's effective date, which CPSC proposes setting 180 days after a final rule publishes. No final rule has been issued.

The numbers behind it

In the proposal, CPSC says it identified 227 unique incidents tied to these products' batteries from January 1, 2019 through December 31, 2023, and that it is aware of 39 fatalities, 181 injuries and 137 non-injury incidents among them. The Commission says staff searched its own databases — the Consumer Product Safety Risk Management System and the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System — and that the count reflects what was documented there as of November 1, 2024. Fires accounted for 195 of the 227 incidents and all 39 of the deaths, the Commission says.

The dates

The hearing notice carries its own deadlines. Anyone wanting to speak at the October 21 hearing must email a request and the written text of their remarks to CPSC's Office of the Secretary, captioned "Lithium-Ion Battery NPRM; Oral Presentation," and pre-register for the webinar — both due by 5 p.m. Eastern October 15. The hearing opens at 10 a.m. Eastern October 21. Written comments on the proposed rule itself were due August 24, 2026, under the original proposal, and that window has closed.

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