Effective January 1_st, 2023, a new DOE rule will effectively prohibit the manufacture, distribution, and sale of most incandescent and halogen lamps in the US. This rule applies a minimum efficiency of 45 lumens per watt to general service lamps which is understood to be unachievable by incandescent and halogen style lamps. This rule, therefore, will accelerate the full market transition to LED bulbs.

The rule is being applied to retailers along with manufacturers, distributors, and importers. Penalties will start being applied in the first quarter of 2023 and then increase later in the year. Because these penalties are being applied to retailers, we expect to only see LED style bulbs on shelves come January.

How does this affect IAMU Members? First, the full transition to more energy efficient bulbs should reduce your wholesale power consumption. Second, for those members still offering an efficiency rebate for purchasing efficient bulbs, you may want to consider repurposing that budget for other efficiency or load-growth incentive programs.

There is still plenty of time to enroll in MunEEBuck$, and have your rebate program fully launched by July 1st. Please contact Jeff Gorrie (309-678-5579) soon if you would like to move your current rebate program onto our shared platform or if you would like to consider launching a new program.