NATIONWIDE — A project of George W. Bush’s administration, the incandescent light bulb ban is finally becoming a reality.

The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 affects the manufacture of many types of incandescent light bulbs—the ones that once cast a gentle glow in every room in your house and that heated your Easy-Bake Oven.

You can keep your old bulbs, and other real-life matters

The Department of Energy (DOE) notes that the law:

Does not ban the use or purchase of incandescent bulbs.

Does not ban the sale or manufacture of all incandescent bulbs, just the household incandescent (and other) bulbs that emit less than 45 lumens per watt. The manufacture of the bulbs will cease.

If you have a stash of those bulbs, you can still use them.

Requires about 25 percent greater efficiency for household light bulbs. Household bulbs, the DOE said, traditionally used between 40 and 100 watts of electricity.

Many bulbs, including specialty bulbs, three-way bulbs, chandelier bulbs, refrigerator bulbs, plant grow lights and others, are exempt from the law's requirements.

What is an incandescent bulb?

An incandescent bulb works by incandescence—a filament is heated and light is produced. Bulbs.com notes that incandescent bulbs have a very low manufacturing cost and work well on either alternating current or direct current.

But why?

The DOE said that residential LED bulbs use 75 percent less energy and last far longer than incandescent bulbs do. 

“Widespread use of LED lighting has a large potential impact on energy savings in the United States,” the department wrote. “By 2035, the majority of lighting installations are anticipated to use LED technology, and energy savings from LED lighting could top 569 TWh annually by 2035, equal to the annual energy output of more than 92 1,000 MW power plants.”

In other words, “the rules are projected to cut carbon emissions by 222 million metric tons.”

And there’s money. “The average household saves about $225 in energy costs per year by using LED lighting,” the DOE wrote.

Mileage and more

The act includes many other provisions that do not pertain to lighting. They include:

higher gas mileage in automobiles;

transportation electrification;

increased reliance on biofuels; and

training for green jobs.

Read on at www.epa.gov.