Good to hear it is waxing as the interesting and necessary applications of different kinds of light bulbs is too valuable to become restricted.
Technological improvements work best when the technology is done well and consumers have chosen to use them voluntarily.
Fervor to ban light bulbs dims
Assembly majority is now behind bill setting energy-efficient rules for manufacturers.
By Jim Sanders - Bee Capitol Bureau
Published 12:00 am PDT Sunday, June 17, 2007
Thomas Edison can rest in peace -- his incandescent light bulb won't be banned by California lawmakers this year after all.
Legislation to phase out the common bulb was shelved this month, elbowed aside by a competing bill that sends lighting makers an ultimatum: Conserve energy, or the party's over.
Assembly Bill 1109 would require the state to set an energy-efficiency standard for light bulbs that Edison's nearly 130-year-old invention can't currently meet -- but might in the future.
"We've really worked hard to make sure that we're not playing that game of picking winners and losers," said Assemblyman Jared Huffman, who crafted the bill.
Supporters hail AB 1109 as a national model that would reduce electrical demand, curb emission of 6 million tons of greenhouse gases annually, and save ratepayers $3 billion per year by negating the need for five new power plants.
But opponents blast the bill as a backdoor ban on incandescents and the latest link in a chain of bills that intrude upon consumer choice.
