Transportation Department would require signs on some lithium-ion battery shipments

The Transportation Secretary would revise federal transportation rules to require an external placard. It would cover freight containers and other cargo units, transport vehicles, and rail cars carrying the battery quantity set by the Secretary. The threshold would consider battery size, weight, energy capacity, and different risks during transport. Placards must be visible from every side and recognizable to law enforcement and first responders. The Secretary would have to revise the rules no later than two years after enactment.

The Transportation Secretary would assess compliance effects, consult affected groups, and review the finished rules. Consultation would include law enforcement and first responders, transportation and logistics groups, supply-chain experts, and battery and hazardous-material experts. The assessment must examine placard costs, supply-chain disruption, and effects on small and rural businesses and transportation providers, and the rule must account for its findings. The Secretary must report to Congress before making changes based on a review. Congress would receive a briefing within 30 days after the first rule revision. Quantity thresholds would be reviewed at least every two years, while effectiveness and related technology would be reviewed periodically.