To standardize and improve safety training specific to electric vehicles for firefighters and other emergency response providers, and for other purposes.
About This Bill
Committee
Latest Action · June 20, 2024
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
The SAFER EVs Act directs federal agencies to improve safety training for firefighters and emergency responders dealing with electric vehicles. The bill requires the Department of Energy, Department of Transportation, and Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate research on EV safety standards, develop best practices, and create a technical report updated every three years that identifies training needs and target regions based on EV adoption rates. The legislation also tasks the United States Fire Administration with updating and distributing EV safety training programs through the National Fire Academy and state fire academies, with emphasis on training-the-trainer approaches for both urban and rural areas. Additionally, the bill requires the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to consider the quality and completeness of manufacturers' emergency response instructions when rating vehicles, with specific attention to lithium-ion battery fire safety for electric vehicles. The legislation authorizes $10 million in grants to state fire academies for electric vehicle safety training and requires state academies to track and report annual participation rates among firefighters and emergency medical services personnel.
Take Action
Your position
Add a comment
to comment on this bill.
Annotate the text
Highlight any passage on the Summary or Full Text tab to attach a note. Annotations appear on the Annotations tab.