It's being reported that the budget deal proposed by congress today blocks implementation of the energy efficiency standards set forth in EISA 2007.  However, before you get your hopes up, keep in mind that it does so by preventing the government from spending any money on enforcement of the law or other projects related to the new requirements.  If I recall correctly, a budget bill contained the same provision a couple years ago, and basically changed nothing.  Unlike some of the other cuts in the plan, such as high-speed rail, the efficiency standards do not necessarily require any funding to be effective, and preventing spending does not repeal the law.

If enough people protested it would be repealed. I could understand a law requiring tighter insulated houses or thankless water heaters if energy is so much a concern, but light bulbs in residential is plain idiocy. Im stocking up on what ever incandescents I can find.


I still think the manufacturers got together and pushed it through. Not much profit comes from incandescents while a CFL or LED has parts from all over the world and its not just the light bulb makes who profit from it.   

I could understand a law requiring tighter insulated houses or thankless water heaters if energy is so much a concern.

But even that is a nonsense. Even when the housing thermal management count for one of the highest energy consumption items per capita, directly enforcing the way how people use it is a nonsense. E.g. investing into seasonal house, when the use season is short does not save anything, just because most of the time the building is left with the heating/cooling OFF.
The other major "energy consumer" is the transportation, in most places it is the major one.

If the consequences of energy production is a concern, you have to first save the energy on places, where it is consumed the most and the upgrades are not terribly expensive. How to judge that? Quite easy method: Move some taxes on the energy and the desire to save money will make sure, the most optimum upgrades will be made by the users/owners.
The taxing may differenciate according to the thread level (environment damage, national energy security interests,...) it pose.
And that will force the production technologies to better technologies, when they will be really ready.