The Department of Energy (DOE) adopted two new rules Tuesday that strengthen energy efficiency standards for lightbulbs and will effectively phase out the sale of traditional bulbs by the following year. Although, consumer analysts claim that LED bulbs are not only more expensive, costing almost $4 each as opposed to $1 for an incandescent bulb, they are not stocked in stores in lower-income communities. Around 30 percent of the two billion bulbs sold in the U.S. every year are incandescent.
The Democrat claims the changes will help conserve energy and reduce utility bills for families by roughly $100 each year, according to a DOE press release. Collectively, the measure is estimated to save Americans $3 billion annually.
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While more expensive to purchase, the new bulbs save an average of $177 over the course of a 20-year lifespan, compared to incandescent bulbs - yet critics explained that many low-income families are not in a position to think of long-term finances.
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The phaseout of incandescent bulbs was on track to start in 2019 though it was halted by then-President Donald Trump due to “bowing pressure” from some of the world’s largest lightbulb manufacturers, The New York Times reported.
The same firms had complied with similar phase-out rules in the EU without complaint, though are announced to be happy about higher manufacturing costs, lower profit margins, and increased competition in the LED market. Trump’s Administration, at the time, backed their decision by alleging it was made to “protect consumer choice” and guarantee Americans “do not pay the price for unnecessary overregulation from the federal government.”
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The DOE claims most of the nation is already using LED lights, which reportedly use a fraction of the electricity of incandescent bulbs and last 50 times longer. The shift has reduced electricity demands in American homes, saved consumers’ money, and has decreased greenhouse gas emissions, the agency claimed.
“The lighting industry is already embracing more energy-efficient products, and this measure will accelerate progress to deliver the best products to American consumers and build a better and brighter future,” Energy Secretary Jennifer M. Granholm announced in a statement Tuesday.
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“By raising energy efficiency standards for lightbulbs, we’re putting $3 billion back in the pockets of American consumers every year and substantially reducing domestic carbon emissions.” The DOE estimates the new bulb standards will cut planet-warming carbon dioxide emissions by 222 million metric tons over the next 30 years, equivalent to emissions generated by 28 million American homes in only one year.
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