BILL ANALYSIS
AB 722
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Date of Hearing: April 23, 2007
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON UTILITIES AND COMMERCE
Lloyd E. Levine, Chair
AB 722 (Levine) - As Introduced: February 22, 2007
SUBJECT : Energy: general service incandescent lamp.
SUMMARY : Prohibits the sale of general service incandescent
lamps in the state after January 1, 2012.
EXISTING LAW : Requires the CEC to create energy efficiency
standards for new construction and for numerous electronic
products.
THIS BILL :
1)Prohibits, the sale of general service incandescent lamps in
the state after January 1, 2012.
2)Defines "general service incandescent lamp" to mean a standard
incandescent or halogen type lamp that is intended for general
service applications, has a wattage rating of no less than 25
watts and no greater than 150 watts and is of one of several
specified shapes. A general service incandescent lamp does
not include several specified specialty lamps.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown.
COMMENTS : According to the author, the purpose of this bill is
to significantly increase the efficiency of indoor and outdoor
lighting systems. "Replacing incandescent light bulbs with more
efficient bulbs reduces demand for electricity. In fact, the
California Energy Commission reports that completely eliminating
inefficient incandescent bulbs will reduce CO2 emissions by 1.82
million metric tons per year."
1) What is the efficiency of light bulbs today : The most common
form of lighting in California today is incandescent lighting.
Almost 2% of all energy consumption in the state comes from
incandescent bulbs. An incandescent bulb works by sending an
electrical current through a filament. The current heats the
filament to an extremely high temperature and creates light.
Approximately 95% of the power consumed by an incandescent light
bulb is emitted as heat, rather than as visible light, meaning
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that 95% of the electricity used when a light bulb is turned on
is wasted. Some forms of incandescent lighting such as halogen
lights increase efficiency somewhat so that only 91% of the
electricity used is lost to heat.
Light output is measured in lumens. A typical 60 watt
incandescent light bulb will create 850 lumens, or close to 14
lumens per watt. A typical compact florescent light bulb that is
on the market today creates 950 lumens and uses only 15 watts of
electricity for a rating of 63 lumens per watt - a 450% increase
in efficiency.
The CEC already has efficiency standards for lighting. The
newest CEC standards, which go into effect on January 1, 2008,
require that a bulb that produces 850 lumens (a typical 60 watt
bulb) consumes no more than 57 watts. This is about a 5%
efficiency improvement from the 2007 usage. These standards are
periodically updated.
2) What about the costs : According to the CEC initial cost of an
incandescent light bulb is about $0.50. Recent prices
comparisons conducted in the Sacramento and Los Angeles areas
found that CFL light bulbs were generally under $3.00 per bulb.
However, a new 20-watt compact fluorescent light bulb produces
as much light as a traditional 75-watt incandescent bulb. The
CFL also lasts up to 10 times longer than a traditional
incandescent light bulb (an incandescent bulb has a lamp life of
1,000 hours while a CFL has a lamp life of 10,000 hours). Bases
on and average California energy costs of $.105 per kWh the
total energy cost of a incandescent light vs. a CFL over the
life of a CFL is $78.75 vs. $23.25 or a $55.50 energy savings.
Combine the energy savings with the fact that one $3.00 CLF will
replace 10 $0.50 incandescent bulbs and the total savings per
bulb is $57.50.
Additionally, many power companies have begun providing CFL
bulbs to their customers free or at reduced costs. Currently all
three of the large investor owned utilities and many of the
publicly owned utilities have programs to help reduce the costs
of CFLs.
3) Can we really replace the incandescent ? A common complaint
about CFLs is that they do not offer the same light quality as
traditional incandescent lights. Light quality is measured by
"temperature" and rated in Kelvins. An incandescent light
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typically produces light in the 3000 Kelvin range (3000K). CFLs
are widely available on the market which are labeled as "soft
white" that produce light in the 3000K range. However, CFLs can
be purchased in a much broader range of temperatures ranging
from 2700K to 6000K. In an ongoing, if somewhat unscientific
test conducted by committee staff, people have been asked to
compare two light bulbs in identical lamps and identify which is
a CFL and which is an incandescent. The majority of people are
not able to correctly identify the incandescent light.
Additionally, CFLs now come in a variety of shapes and sizes.
Most major home improvement stores and stores such as Target and
Walmart sell CFLs that range from candelabra lights, to flood
lights.
There are also a number of other products on the market today
that can be used to replace incandescent bulbs. LED lighting,
which works as down-lighting, is becoming widely available and
the lifetime costs of these products are less than the costs of
the incandescent lights they are replacing. LED lighting is
already common used in traffic signals.
4) What other countries are doing : California would not be alone
in banning the sale of incandescent bulbs. In March, Australia's
Minister of Energy announced that the Ministry is developing
regulations that will ban the sale of incandescent bulbs in
2010. The European Commission is establishing a regulation
addressing incandescent lighting by 2009 under the terms of the
Eco-design of End-Use Products Directive. The United Kingdom
government announced a planned completion of the phase-out of
inefficient general service incandescent lamps by 2011, in
advance of the probable provisions of the European Union
Directive.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Californians Against Waste (Support Intent)
AFSCME
Opposition
Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association
California Family Council
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California State Floral Association (CSFA)
California Seed Association (CSA)
Analysis Prepared by : Edward Randolph / U. & C. / (916)
319-2083