Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of my bipartisan legislation titled Setting Consumer Standards for Lithium- Ion Batteries Act. I am grateful for the support of Chair Rodgers, Ranking Member Pallone, and all the members of the Energy and Commerce Committee. I am also grateful for the partnership of Congress Members Yvette Clarke and Andrew Garbarino. At the core of our legislative progress has been the indefatigable advocacy of the FDNY, the Nation's premier fire department. The sheer speed and scale of the destruction that a lithium-ion battery fire can bring to communities like mine is nothing short of staggering. In the Bronx, we saw one of our few neighborhood supermarkets, 2096 Grand Concourse, reduced to complete rubble at the hands of a five-alarm fire caused by a malfunctioning lithium-ion battery. Lithium-ion battery fires are happening with greater frequency and ferocity in America. Indeed, New York City, in particular, has emerged as the epicenter of lithium-ion battery fires, which have grown exponentially, from more than 30 in 2019 to more than 40 in 2020, to more than 100 in 2021, to more than 200 in 2022. In the span of just 4 years, America's largest city has seen a 900 percent surge in lithium- ion batteries, creating an unprecedented crisis in fire safety. Poorly manufactured lithium-ion batteries, largely imported from China, are hidden ticking time bombs waiting to detonate in American homes and communities.…”