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Electric Skateboard Laws in the US

Find out more about eskate laws in the US. eSkate Hub explains where electric skateboards are legal and where they are not.

riding an electric skateboard

By Nate

Updated:

Please note: The information below should not be considered legal advice. The contents of this page are for general information purposes only. Whilst I endeavour to ensure that the information on this site is correct, I do not accept any liability for error or omission.

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Are Electric Skateboards Legal In The US?

Electric Skateboard laws are falling far behind the capabilities of technology, however, we are starting to see mainstream uptake of electric skateboards which means regulators will be forced to do something about them.

The majority of states in the US have not yet legalized electric skateboards. However, there are a handful of places in America where you can legally ride your electric skateboard, which I outline a little further below.

Now, you’ve either already got yourself an electric skateboard and you’re concerned about getting into trouble with the law after hearing some horror stories of police confiscating them, or, you really want to buy an electric skateboard but haven’t yet because you want to know if the electric skateboard laws.

Electric skateboarding is still a relatively new thing and it’s only just starting to hit the mainstream now and as we already know, technology moves a lot faster than governments do and so, we are now stuck at a point where eskaters are waiting for the laws to catch up.

As you can imagine, the electric skateboard laws in America are not quite straight forward.

There are no Federal laws that either allow or limit the use of eboards. This does not mean that the absence of the law means that they are allowed, it’s actually the opposite. For any type of vehicle to be permitted on the road, it needs to adhere to a minimum set of design standards, which electric skateboards, unfortunately, do not meet.

Coming down to the state level, the vast majority of states have not made an effort to cater for electric skateboards so we’ll need to assume they will lean on the Federal Laws and consider them technically illegal.

But all is not lost. Some states and even local governments have taken it into their own hands to determine a ruling for eboards. So below I have outlined a few states in which electric skateboarding is legal. I have also made a special mention for two big states where eskating is surprisingly illegal.

I want to keep updating this post to cover each individual state, but as you can imagine, that is a ton of work, so, keep checking back to see if your state has been added.

Are Electric Skateboards Legal in California?

Good news for Californians. The electric skateboard laws are rider friend with them being legal to ride in public areas, however, there are a few rules that need to be followed in order to comply with the law.

I’ll spare you the history and the nitty-gritty of the law because it is quite long and I spent many hours trying to decipher all the legal speak. But if you want to read about the regulations you can check out Bill AB-604 Electrically motorized boards (2015-2016).

Basically, here is what you need to adhere to in regards to eskate laws in California:

  • You must wear a helmet
  • You must be 16 years of age or older
  • You cannot be under the influence of alcohol or drugs
  • You can only ride on roads with a speed limit of under 35mph
  • You cannot ride on highways
  • Your eboard must not be capable of travelling at a speed of more than 20mph
  • The power of your electric skateboard must be under 1000W
  • Your speed cannot exceed 15mph when riding on public property
  • When riding at night you must have a front white light, a rear red reflector and yellow reflectors on the side. They can be attached to either the rider or the eboard.

Are Electric Skateboards Legal in Florida?

Riding an electric skateboard in public areas is illegal in the state of Florida. Florida classifies a motor vehicle “an automobile, motorcycle, truck, trailer, semitrailer, truck tractor and semitrailer combination, or any other vehicle operated on the roads of this state, used to transport persons or property, and propelled by power other than muscular power.”

I would say that an electric skateboard fits this description is would be hard to argue against it.

All motor vehicles must be registered in order to be ridden on the road, and unfortunately, we are unable to register an electric skateboard due to them not meeting minimum safety and design requirements. 

Motor vehicles are also not allowed to be operated on footpaths or in bike lanes. This pretty much rules out all public places to ride an electric skateboard..

Are Electric Skateboards Legal in Michigan?

Electric skateboards were made legal in Michigan in 2018.

After passing the House Bill 5391, eskaters can now enjoy their rides just as cyclists do. The eskate laws are the same rules that apply to cyclists. You can ride an electric skateboard on any road with a speed limit under 25mph and your maximum speed also cannot exceed that limit. The electric skateboard cannot have more 2,500W of power and must only transport one person at a time.

Here, I’ve also put together some information about some bigger states that 

Are Electric Skateboards Legal in New York?

New York has also made electric skateboards illegal, and even electric bikes for that matter. This has caused massive public outrage and the state government hasn’t made any effort to reconsider its intentions for electric skateboard laws in New York.

There are some great </span style=”text-decoration: underline;”>discussions happening online about New York eskate laws so hopefully, we can all rally together to change the minds of lawmakers in the state.

Are Electric Skateboards Legal in Texas?

There is no specific classification for electric skateboards in Texas, however, it could be argued that it comes under the legal definition of a motor-assisted scooter, in which it would be legal to ride an electric skateboard on the road under certain conditions.

The law that outlines the road rules of bicycles and mopeds, golf carts, and other low-powered vehicles clearly places an electric skateboard in the ‘motor-assisted scooter’ category.

If this is the case, riding an electric skateboard in Texas is legal while adhering to the following rules:

  • You can only ride on roads that have a speed limit of 35mph or less
  • You can ride in a separated bicycle lane
  • You can ride on the sidewalk

Keep in mind that this is not an explicit law for electric skateboards and any encounter with an officer where they say you need to get off your eboard, you must comply with his direction.

There have been incidents in Texas where police have not acted favourably towards people riding electric skateboards.

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