Political Quotes

“Mr. Chairman, in this House, in 2007, a bill was passed called the Energy Independence and Security Act. One of the features of this bill was to take away consumer choice when deciding which light bulbs our constituents could use in their own homes. Since that time, I have heard from literally tens of thousands of people on the inequities of this provision. Mr. Chairman, they're right. While the government has passed energy-efficiency standards in other realms over the years, they have never moved so far and lowered standards so drastically to a point where at this date, over 5 years, the technology is still years off in making light bulbs that are compliant with the 2007 law and at a price point that the average American can afford. Last year, light bulb companies talked about their new 2007 law- compliant bulbs that are available now, but they're available at price points of $20, $30, $40, and $50 each bulb. Opponents to my amendment will claim that the 2007 language does not ban the incandescent bulb. This is true. It bans the sale of the 100- watt, the 60-watt, and the 45-watt bulbs. The replacement bulbs are far from economically efficient, even if they are energy efficient. A family living paycheck to paycheck can't afford to replace every bulb in their house at $25 a bulb, even if those bulbs will last 20 years. This Congress should be on the side of the consumer and on the side of consumer choice.…”