The Consumer Federation of America, the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC), and 24 consumer groups from across the country urged the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to implement the overdue 45 lumens/watt minimum backstop standard for household lighting products, including all the shapes and sizes added by the Obama Administration, as soon as is practicable.

Put into place in 2007, the Energy Conservation and Policy Act (ECPA) as amended by the Energy Independence Act of 2007 (EISA) as a failsafe measure in case the Secretary of Energy “fails to complete a rulemaking” as directed, “the Secretary shall prohibit the sale of any general service lamp that does not meet a minimum efficacy standard of 45 lumens per watt,” effective January 1, 2020.  Unfortunately for consumers, the Trump Administration did not complete a rulemaking on GSLs and did not implement the 45 lumens/watt backstop standard as required by law.