Committee advances bill to tighten e-bike labeling and battery-safety rules, sends it to Committee of the Whole

Representative Smith introduced an amended version of House Bill 25-11 97 on safety and sales of electrically assisted bicycles, and the Energy & Environment Committee voted to advance the measure to the Committee of the Whole as amended.

The bill’s sponsors said the rewrite focuses on two objectives: enhancing safety for riders under age 16 and reducing property-fire risks from uncertified batteries. "HB 25-11 97 has 2 goals. The first is to enhance the safety of e bike riders, particularly for those riders who are under the age of 16," Representative Smith told the committee. She said dealers, parents and manufacturers raised concerns during stakeholder meetings and that the new text resulted from that outreach.

The amendment adopted by the panel does three main things: it adds a statutory definition clarifying that a vehicle modified so it no longer meets a legal e-bike class is excluded from the e-bike definitions; it prohibits selling a vehicle that is falsely labeled as a class 1, 2, 3 or multimodal e-bike (in-store or online) and treats such mislabeling as a deceptive trade practice; and it requires additional labeling for multimodal e-bikes identifying the highest class or each class in which the vehicle is capable of operation.

Representative Taggart, the bill’s co-sponsor, addressed batteries: he told members the measure would require new e-bikes sold in Colorado to use certified batteries and to be labeled as such. He cited testing standards and said the measure would ask for certification such as UL 2849 or comparable ISO-approved laboratory tests. "All we're asking is that these batteries be certified and they be labeled," Taggart said.

Proponents included Benedict Wright, education manager for Bicycle Colorado, who said the bill targets vehicles that "masquerade as e-bikes" and can reach speeds typical of electric motorcycles. Wright told the committee that clearer labeling and limits will help parents, law enforcement and land managers. Mackenzie Hart, owner/operator of Park Family Cyclery, said retailers want to educate customers about intended use and safety and supported clearer labels and battery standards.

Committee members adopted two technical amendments during the hearing. Amendment L002 pushed the effective date for one new labeling requirement from Jan. 1, 2026 to Jan. 1, 2027. Members also approved the strike-and-replace (L001) that contained the new bill text. The amendments were moved and passed without recorded objections.

The committee then voted to send HB 25-11 97, as amended, to the Committee of the Whole with a favorable recommendation. The roll call printed in the transcript recorded 12 affirmative votes and no objections; the clerk announced the measure "passes." The sponsors said the bill applies to new sales only and does not require certification for previously owned e-bikes being sold privately.

The bill text cites the three-class statutory framework for e-bikes as adopted in state law in 2019: class 1 (pedal-assist only, assistance up to 20 miles per hour), class 2 (throttle-assisted, assistance up to 20 mph), and class 3 (higher-speed pedal-assist). The sponsors and witnesses noted that some products marketed as e-bikes include a multimode or off-road setting that can allow speeds well above 20 mph and motor outputs that exceed 750 watts—configurations that the bill would treat as outside the e-bike definitions.

What happens next: HB 25-11 97 was advanced to the Committee of the Whole as amended; sponsors indicated they will continue technical discussions about certified test labs and alternative standards (UL 2849 and EN 15194 were mentioned) to ensure the requirement accommodates legitimate certification regimes and does not unduly burden retailers.

Votes at a glance: The committee adopted amendment L002 (date change) and the strike-and-replace L001; the committee then moved the amended bill to the Committee of the Whole with a favorable recommendation (roll call reported in transcript: 12 yes, 0 no).