What you need to know

After 16 years of bipartisan discussion, the incandescent lightbulb ban is now in effect.

The effort to phase out the lightbulb began with former President George W. Bush in 2007 and has since been altered by multiple presidential administrations.

Bush’s Energy Independence and Security Act did not outright ban incandescent bulbs, but it did call for household lightbulbs to have “about 25 percent greater efficiency,” according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

In 2017, former President Barack Obama added two new regulations to the act which would phase out incandescent lightbulbs and other specialty bulbs by January 2020, according to the EPA.

The Trump administration withdrew the 2017 regulations in 2019, “on the basis that the legal rationale underlying those revisions misconstrued existing law,” according to the EPA.

A new rule was passed by President Joe Biden in April 2022 stating lightbulbs must emit a minimum of 45 lumens per watt.

Here’s everything you need to know about the incandescent lightbulb ban.

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Which lightbulbs are banned under the new rule?

The new police establishes a new minimum energy-efficiency standard of 45 lumens per watt, meaning bulbs under that efficiency level will not be permitted on the market.

Traditional incandescent lightbulbs provide just 15 lumens per watt, according to lightbulb manufacturer Phillips. Meanwhile, LED lights can measure at 70 to 100 lumens per watt.

Which lightbulbs are not banned under the new rule?

Not all incandescent lightbulbs are banned under the new rule.

Here’s what can still be manufactured and sold in stores, according to the Department of Energy:

• Appliance lamps
• Black light lamps
• Bug lamps
• Colored lamps
• General service fluorescent lamps
• High intensity discharge lamps
• Infrared lamps
• Left-hand thread lamps
• Marine lamps
• Plant lights
• Flood lights
• Reflector lamps
• Showcase lamps
• Traffic signals
• Other specialty lights, including…