GOP Lawmakers Target Efficient Light Bulb Mandate

Sen. Mike Enzi has a dim view of a federal law requiring light bulbs to be more efficient.

The Wyoming Republican is pushing a bill to repeal the 2007 law and give consumers the choice to buy any light bulbs they want.

"Government doesn't need to be in the business of telling people what light bulb they have to use," Enzi said. "If left alone, the best bulb will win its rightful standing in the marketplace."

Twenty-seven senators – all Republicans – support the bill, but many Democrats and consumer groups say the plan is not so bright. They call it a step backward and compare it to trading in a fuel-efficient hybrid car for a gas-guzzling SUV.

Enzi's bill, and related measures in the House, "would push aside innovation, derail plans for new job-creating lighting factories and eliminate an estimated $10 billion in annual energy costs savings – taking as much as $200 per year out of the checkbooks of every U.S. household," said Bob Keefe, a spokesman for the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental group that backs the 2007 law.