Biden Administration Passes New Regulations for Manufacturers
Source：New York Times
From：Taiwan Trade Center, Chicago
Update Time：2022/06/28
In mid-April the Biden administration adopted two new rules that set stricter energy-efficiency standards for light bulbs. These new restrictions will effectively phase out the iconic incandescent light bulbs in the United States by 2023.
For lightbulb manufacturers profit margins for incandescent lighting are higher than for LEDs, largely due to the difference in manufacturing equipment required for LED lighting. This push to phase out Incandescent light bulbs comes from the Biden Administration's effort to restore many of the environmental rules rolled back during the Trump Presidency.
However, Light Blub manufacturers have advocated for a slow pivot from incandescent bulbs as to avoid wasting inventory, avoiding blubs that have already been made to be thrown away unused.
The recent regulations passed have been both celebrated and criticized by energy-efficacy groups. Claiming the regulations are a move in the right direction but give manufacturers too much time to move away from manufacturing technology for which replacement was already widely available.
“LEDs have become so inexpensive that there’s no good reason for manufacturers to keep selling 19th century technology that just isn’t very good at turning electrical energy into light,” said Steven Nadel, executive director of the American Council for Energy Efficient Economy.
However, the National Electrical Manufacturers Association, the trade group of manufacturers of light bulbs, said the group “appreciates the administrations recognition of the challenges industry faces in complying with the rule and the adoptions of a more manageable compliance time frame,” said Spencer Pederson, its vice president of public affairs.
Research shows that low-end retailers like dollar stores or convenience shops whose customer base is typically made up of lower-income communities have yet to make the change from stocking their shelves with LEDs vs the traditional incandescent bulbs. As these regulations begin to take full effect low end consumers will likely feel the pinch of the switch to greener energy in their short-term spending budgets.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/26/climate/biden-incandescent-led-light-bulb.html