The House of Representatives voted on a repeal of the so-called
“bulb ban” on July 12, 2011, but failed to reach its needed two-
thirds majority, concluding with 233 members in favor of the
repeal and 193 against it.  The controversial measure is part of
the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, which requires
all general service lamps within a range of lumen output to be
30 percent more efficient than the standard incandescent lamps
at that time. The law will go into effect beginning Jan. 1,
2012.  However, even though the original measure received
bipartisan support, the issue has since been shrouded in
political controversy. While the law will effectively phase out
incandescent lamps as Thomas Edison designed them in 1879, it
does not explicitly ban incandescent lamps.  “The law sets a
minimum efficiency standard of about 30 percent for general
service light bulbs. It does not ban any technology from being
used to meet that standard,” said Joseph Higbee, director,
marketing and communications, Natio