Legislation + Regulation

The Federal Trade Commission today announced that starting in mid-2011, consumers shopping for light bulbs will notice new labeling on packaging designed to help them choose among the different types of bulbs on the market – traditional incandescent lamps, CFLs and LED lamps. The new labels will enable consumers to save money by selecting the [...]

We are in an era of regulated efficiency. EC&M Magazine has published a nice summary of lighting regulations for their April issue here. I was pleased to be interviewed for this article about the role lighting controls can play in upgrades in existing buildings.

California new Title 20 standards, which went into effect January 1, 2010, created new energy efficiency standards for 150-500W metal halide light fixtures used in indoor and outdoor applications. These fixtures may not be manufactured in the State of California unless they meet the new standards. For the most part, the fixture will have to [...]

On May 18, LightNOW reported that Cleveland was considering a 10-year deal giving Sunpu-Opto Semiconductor Ltd. exclusive rights to sell millions of LED lights to the city in exchange for the company making Cleveland its North American headquarters, creating an estimated 350 jobs. The proposed deal naturally irritated GE Lighting, which is based in Cleveland. [...]

The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee today approved legislation that for the first time would set national energy efficiency standards for pole-mounted outdoor lighting. These standards are supported by NEMA. In 2007, the Department of Energy estimated that outdoor lighting consumes more than 178 TWh annually, which is the equivalent of 42 coal-burning power [...]

PC World has reported that Toshiba has ended production of mass-market incandescent light bulbs after 120 years of making them. The company will focus on energy-efficient products such as LED. Get the story here.

A coalition of 80 contractor groups, unions, manufacturers, businesses, financial services companies and energy-efficiency advocates to advance the adoption of Building STAR, a proposal to makeover America’s commercial and apartment building infrastructure with more energy-efficient technologies. Introduced March 4 as S. 3079, Building STAR Energy Efficiency Rebate Act of 2010, the bill is a package [...]

While the days of incandescent may ultimately be numbered, those numbers will not be 2012, 2013 or 2014, as originally thought after passage of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. The energy-saving version of Philips Halogena already complied, and now Sylvania has a halogen screw-in lamp that is compliant. Currently, there is a [...]

The Argus Leader has reported that South Dakota’s Energy Management Office has created a revolving $2.8 million loan fund that can be used to purchase and install energy-efficient lighting (in addition to HVAC, windows, insulation, renewable energy) for K-12 school districts, state tech schools and nonprofits. The fund is part of the Federal Energy Efficiency [...]