There is another matter, however, which was addressed by the U.S. Congress which passed a law in 2002 that removed jurisdiction for a
specific class of electric vehicle from the U.S. Department of Transporation, tranferring it instead to the Consumer Product Safety Commission for regulation under their section dealing with bicycles. These vehicles are called, in the Federal terminology, low speed electric bicycles. As stated in PL107-319, they are restricted to a speed of 20 mph on a level surface, with a maximum motor size of 750W (equivalent to one horsepower) of output. It was the intention of Congress that these vehicles not be confused with “mopeds”, “motorized bicycles”, and similar designations generally applied to low power two wheeled vehicles that employ fossil fuel engines. The Federal legislation did not place any restrictions on the form factor of the vehicles, leaving room for the development of models that offer more comfort and greater range than traditional bicycles.

The passage of PL107-319 opened the door to the individual states to amend their laws to permit this class of vehicle without the
requirements for operator’s license, registration, or insurance. This was the intention of Congress which it was hoped would be willingly adopted by the states. To date, a number of major states have done so, including California, Texas, Florida, Georgia, as well as number of smaller ones. Recently, because of the heightened emphasis placed upon environmental concerns, coupled with the the runaway cost of gasoline, some states have been giving the Federal law the attention that Congress had hoped for, although six years late.
As manufacturers of this type of vehicle, we have an interest in seeing the states modernize their laws to harmonize with the Federal
intent. Certain states, like Vermont, have simply issued a Law Enforcement bulletin, advising the various police departments within Vermont that the vehicles were to be regarded as no more than bicycles as long as the compliant with the terms of PL107-319. Other states have
passed or are in the process of creating enabling legislation in order to comply with the Federal intent. Unfortunately, Connecticut is not among these. In Connecticut, they are still classed as mopeds or motorized bicycles, alongside the gasoline powered vehicles. Low
speed electric bicycles should very definitely be considered for inclusion among the options for practical, economical, pollution-free alternative tranportation.
Additional in-depth information is available on our web site at http://veloteq.com/links_to_laws.htm . We welcome any comments

James K. Wood
President/CEO
Veloteq Corporation
Houston, TX