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Incandescent lightbulb sales have been effectively banned across the United States, the culmination of a 16-year legislative effort aimed at cutting energy costs for consumers and reducing the nation’s carbon emissions.
The ban came into effect on August 1, leaving Americans to light their homes and businesses with much more energy-efficient LED bulbs going forward. There are several exceptions to the ban, including appliance lights, traffic signals, and plant lights, among a number of others.
First introduced during then-President George W. Bush’s Administration in 2007, the ban was stalled by President Trump before being reinstated after President Biden took office.
The ban has been a controversial touchpoint for consumers since it was introduced. Proponents have argued it was an obvious step to combat climate change, while others decried it as an overreach of government.
Some consumers simply complained that the quality of LED light paled in comparison to the warm glow of incandescent bulbs, which have reigned supreme across the global lightscape since Thomas Edison invented them in the 1800s.
Below is everything Americans need to know about the ban.
Which bulbs are banned and what replaces them?
The legislation stipulates that all lightbulbs produced and sold as of August 1 must emit a minimum of 45 lumens of brightness per wattage of power.
Those requirements effectively render the incandescent lightbulbs illegal because they typically produce 15 lumens per watt, according to CNN Business.
New restrictions place bulbs like the ubiquitous GE Soft white incandescents on the chopping block.
LED (light emitting diode) bulbs create much more light with less power — about 75 watts per lumen on average — meaning they remain safely within the legal threshold to produce and sell, and will become mainstays on store shelves.
“Going from an incandescent to an LED is like replacing a car that gets 25 miles per gallon with another one that gets 130 mpg,” Lucas Davis, energy economist at the University of California’s Haas School of Business told The New York Times.
Which incandescent bulbs are not banned?
The US Department of Energy (DOE) stipulates that incandescent bulbs can still be used in appliances and the following kinds of lamps:
- Appliance lamps (like kitchen inside stoves of a refrigerator)
- Blacklight lamps
- Bug lamps
- Colored lamps
- General service fluorescent lamps
- Infrared lamps
- Marine signal and service lamps
- Plant lights
- Sign service lamps
- Showcase lamps
- Traffic signal lamps
Why ban incandescent bulbs?
The ban is part of a number of energy-efficient initiatives the Biden Administration is pushing forward, which the DOE said will save households $100 per year and American consumers $3 billion per year on their utility bills.
It is also intended to slash emissions over the next three decades.
“In addition to delivering significant cost savings for households, schools, and businesses, these energy efficiency actions also advance President Biden’s climate goals,” The DOE said in a statement.
“Over the next 30 years, the rules are projected to cut carbon emissions by 222 million metric tons — an amount equivalent to the emissions generated by 28 million homes in one year.”
“LED lightbulbs also last 25 to 50 times longer than incandescent bulbs.”
Can incandescent bulbs already purchased still be used?
Incandescent bulbs already in use or purchased can still be used and do not need to be thrown out.
The ban only covers the manufacture and sale of the bulbs, not their use.
What is the controversy?
The ban has been a hot topic in the years since it was first introduced.
“The government has no business telling an individual what kind of light bulb to buy,” Minnesota Republican Rep. Michele Bachmann said in 2012 when she introduced the “Light Bulb Freedom of Choice Act” in an effort to repeal the legislation, according to CBS News.
President Trump attempted to halt the ban and commonly used it as an example of what he considered oversteps of environmental laws.
“The bulb that we’re being forced to use, number one, to me, most importantly, I always look orange,” he told members of the Republican House in 2019.
Now with the legislation’s final passing, critics still remain.
“President Biden continues to push liberal fantasies through his weaponized federal agencies,” said Rep. Andy Barr, a Republican from Kentucky, according to Fox News. “The Department of Energy should be focused on American energy independence, not on what lightbulbs you can or can’t purchase for your home or business.”
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