In a move lauded by firefighters and lawmakers alike, Congress is set to enact a measure that will establish a national safety standard for lithium-ion batteries, these are increasingly found in e-bikes and scooters and have been linked to a spate of destructive fires. According to ABC7NY, the legislation, expected to pass as part of the upcoming budget bill, comes in response to the 929 fires and 33 deaths in New York City alone since 2019, attributed to substandard batteries.
The New York City Fire Commissioner Robert Tucker highlighted the urgency of this legislation, stating "For the last three years, the FDNY has been sounding the alarm about the dangers of uncertified lithium-ion batteries. We have worked tirelessly to stop the injuries, deaths, and extraordinarily dangerous fires that have become all too common with these devices," as reported by ABC7NY. The bill mandates the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to set new standards and enforce regulations against unsafe devices.
Meanwhile, in Washington D.C., a bipartisan safety measure to curb these dangerous fires has been tucked into the stop-gap spending bill, a legislative tactic aiming to ensure the bill's passage and avert a government shutdown, according to Spectrum News1. The provision, backed by the FDNY, could dramatically reduce the 264 fires, 95 injuries, and five fatalities logged in New York City as of Monday, the urgency of the situation bolstered by broad support from several New York lawmakers.
With the piece of legislation included in the 1,500-page funding bill, expected to be voted upon in the days to come, and which must be passed by Congress and then signed into law to avoid a government shutdown the safety measure has the endorsement of New York representatives such as Rep. Ritchie Torres, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, and Sen. Chuck Schumer – all Democrats – who are vocally advocating for its passage. Schumer, in a statement captured by Spectrum News1, underscored "The fires and the injuries caused by these batteries have caused tremendous loss across New York and federal action is needed to protect consumers and also our brave firefighters who are on the front lines of this new paradigm in fire prevention spurred by these unpredictable, and often times, very dangerous batteries - now, we will get that action."
Gillibrand and Torres similarly expressed their concerns in statements, with Gillibrand noting the loss fires have caused to New York families and the need for the bill to save lives. Torres thanked his colleagues for their bipartisan efforts, "I am grateful to my colleagues from the New York Congressional delegation who have come together in a bipartisan way to work to create and implement for the first time national safety standards for lithium-ion batteries in order to protect people and communities from unreasonable risk, serious injury or damage, and/or death," as he informed Spectrum News1.
