Originally Posted by
chas58
Federal laws classify low powered electric bikes as bicycles, specifically as" non motorized vehicles."
I believe the cutoff is 750 watts, or 1 HP.
Of course, local laws over ride federal laws, and can be pretty vague with ebikes.
This is the only federal regulation I know of and it classifies ebikes as "low speed electric bicycles" not bikes and as not being a "motor vehicle", but nothing about them being non motorized. A DOT motor vehicle definition is a very specific one. I'd love to see that they are clearly called out as not being motorized on the federal level, that would make it easier on the local, since most local governments will look for precedents when reviewing their ordinances.
https://www.congress.gov/bill/107th-...-bill/727/text