SACRAMENTO — A new bill in Sacramento aims to draw a legal line between electric bikes and high-powered e-motorcycles as the state confronts rising safety concerns and misleading marketing in the fast-growing e-mobility market.
Introduced by Sen. Catherine Blakespear (D-Encinitas), Senate Bill 1167 would make it illegal to advertise or sell high-speed electric vehicles as e-bikes and would allow prosecutors to pursue such mislabeling under criminal and consumer protection laws. The bill clarifies the state’s decades-old definitions as collisions and enforcement challenges mount amid the spread of powerful stand-alone e-motorcycles marketed as e-bikes.
The bill responds to complaints from residents about unsafe riding behavior and the rise of high-powered devices exceeding legal e-bike limits.
