“This is about more than just energy consumption; it is about personal freedom.”
Climatewire reports,
Republican politicians launched their light bulb war in Washington last year. While they failed to get this year’s federal regulations phasing out most types of incandescent light bulbs overturned, the battle plods on.
As of Jan. 1, manufacturing or importing 100-watt lights for sale in the United States is illegal, and 75-, 60- and 40-watt bulbs will reach that point by 2014, but six states have pending legislation that could free them from the new energy guidelines.
Lawmakers from Texas — the nation’s most energy-consuming state — successfully passed a bill last summer that protects the old-fashioned bulbs, as long as they are made and sold within state lines. Now politicians in Virginia, Pennsylvania, Michigan, South Carolina, Georgia and Minnesota have introduced similar legislation to save their light bulbs.
State officials have voiced hopes that Congress will repeal the federal regulations if enough states can follow in Texas’ footsteps, but experts say this could create a patchwork of inconsistent standards across the country, leading to increased manufacturing costs, higher prices for consumers and a light bulb “black market.”
“I do thank the Lord that I live in Texas,” Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas) told Fox News last year. “This is about more than just energy consumption; it is about personal freedom”…..
Actually (at least) 10 states have launched repeal ban bills
Details and progress updates http://ceolas.net/#bills
Several of them have done it over the last weeks, namely Missouri and Nebraska, as well as Virginia.
Arizona bill was vetoed over the Tungsten Issue but may relaunch.
Federal constitutional commerce clause is interpreted elsewhere as allowing for the import of generic non-specific parts in manufacture.
That means tungsten ore (with many other uses) – but not tungsten filaments.
Also Gov Jan Brewer in Arizona ironically, at nearly the same time, passed a Gun law allowing local Arizona manufacture of certain guns – despite, in that case, actual import of special parts, besides which Arizona has no iron ore mining, processing or relevant hardened/special steel manufacture.
Go figure.
The Texas / Arizona comparison is also made here:
http://freedomlightbulb.blogspot.com/2012/01/as-also-virginia-freedom-bill-is.html
EPA says: Mercury is forbidden in power plant exhaust. Mandatory in light bulbs.
An old Greek once told me “The gods created men to worship them, but men created the gods so they could blaspheme.”
I would add a corollary, “Men embrace governments to be served by them, but goverments embrace men to rule over them.”
I agree. Don’t MESS WITH TEXAS!…and I live two states over in Arizona. The curly-mercury bulbs are an eviro-disaster waiting to happen, and the fiber-optics cost an arm AND a leg, so you could afford them, although you’ll THINK you look “silly” manuvering your wheelchair with one arm & one leg. Seriously, it SHOULD be a choice, NOT covered by law!