Urdahl challenges federal phase-out of traditional light bulbs

ST. PAUL – Rep. Dean Urdahl has authored a bill challenging the federal government’s plan to ban the sale of traditional light bulbs.  His hope is to prevent government intrusion while protecting consumers.  Urdahl’s effort is featured on the Star Tribune front page.

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The Grove City Republican’s bill (H.F. 3474) would exempt Minnesota from a 2007 federal law that, for all intents and purposes, phases out traditional light bulbs starting in 2012 and makes those incandescents go dark two years later.

Urdahl said the federal legislation violates states’ rights provided in the 10th Amendment. The point he makes is this: The U.S. Constitution allows the federal government to regulate interstate commerce, so light bulbs manufactured in Minnesotans for Minnesotans to use would be exempt from federal commerce law.

“Most of us agree those curly-Q bulbs have poor light quality and are difficult to dispose of because they contain toxic mercury,” Urdahl said. “But those aren’t even the greatest of my concerns. The real problem I have with this ban is it’s another instance of government creeping even further into our lives. Our founding fathers would be dismayed if they knew Washington is reaching so far into our lives as to control the light bulbs we use. My bill is a stand against this trend of government intrusion, asserting states’ rights whether we’re talking light bulbs or other things.”

There also is the potential for Minnesota to reap a jobs-related benefit from this bill at a time the state is working to reduce its unemployment rate.

“We’re looking to help people get back to work, so this could be an opportunity for entrepreneurs to bring a new line of jobs to Minnesota by manufacturing light bulbs,” said Urdahl, who is awaiting a committee hearing to present his bill. Similar legislation passed the Arizona House this month.

The incandescent bulbs ban is part of the Energy Independence and Security Act, which imposes new efficiency standards beginning in 2012 in an effort to move the country toward more efficient compact-fluorescent light bulbs and LEDs. It phases out the sale of the most widely used incandescent bulbs, ranging from 40 to 100 watts.

District 18B includes the cities of Annandale, Cokato, Howard Lake, and South Haven, and the townships of Cokato, Corinna, French Lake, Middleville, Stockholm, and Southside in Wright County, and covers all of Meeker County.