New Regs Crackdown on Incandescent Bulbs and CTC Exposure: Kiplinger Forecasts
The EPA and Dept. of Energy are planning to enforce rules on hazardous CTC and inefficient incandescent light bulbs.
To help you understand what is going on in the energy sector and what we expect to happen in the future, our highly-experienced Kiplinger Letter team will keep you abreast of the latest developments and forecasts (Get a free issue of The Kiplinger Letter or subscribe). You'll get all the latest news first by subscribing, but we will publish many (but not all) of the forecasts a few days afterward online. Here’s the latest...
Retail sales of most incandescent lightbulbs are now effectively off limits, with the Department of Energy fully enforcing rules that prohibit the import, manufacture and retail sales of most incandescent bulbs. Such enforcement includes slapping steep financial penalties — $542 per violation — on companies, which would translate into millions of dollars for large orders of incandescent bulbs.
Most, if not all, incandescent bulbs can’t meet new efficiency requirements of 45 lumens per watt, prohibiting them despite the absence of a blanket ban. Note that retailers will no longer be exempt from these regulations, a shift from the previous policy that focused primarily on manufacturers and importers.
Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free E-Newsletters
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more - straight to your e-mail.
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice - straight to your e-mail.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will limit worker exposure to CTC: carbon tetrachloride. A recent proposal, if finalized, would allow the agency to set the chemical exposure limit for CTC at 0.03 parts per million over a period of eight hours for use in manufacturing, recycling and laboratory settings.
CTC is primarily used to manufacture other chemicals. Among them are hydrofluoroolefin refrigerants, aerosol propellants, and chlorinated agricultural products. The chemical has been federally banned in consumer products since the 1970s.
CTC is one of 10 high-priority chemicals the EPA is currently evaluating under amendments made to the Toxic Substances Control Act in 2016. Besides CTC, the agency has proposals for asbestos, methylene chloride and perchloroethylene. Experts think trichloroethylene will be the next chemical on the list addressed.
This forecast first appeared in The Kiplinger Letter, which has been running since 1923 and is a collection of concise weekly forecasts on business and economic trends, as well as what to expect from Washington, to help you understand what’s coming up to make the most of your investments and your money. Subscribe to The Kiplinger Letter.
Related Content
To continue reading this article
please register for free
This is different from signing in to your print subscription
Why am I seeing this? Find out more here
-
Earn Delta SkyMiles Worth Up to $1,800 with an AMEX Business Card
Delta SkyMiles and American Express offer 150,000 on business credit card for new cardholders.
By Ellen Kennedy Published
-
Stock Market Today: Markets Soar Amid Strong Earnings for Big Tech
Equities ended the week on an up note thanks to some of the market's biggest names.
By Dan Burrows Published
-
AI to Power the Next Generation of Robots
The Kiplinger Letter There's increasing buzz that the tech behind ChatGPT will make future industrial and humanoid robots far more capable.
By John Miley Published
-
The Robots Are Coming... But Not For a While
The Kiplinger Letter There’s excitement in the tech sector over the potential of humanoid robots, but widespread adoption is likely to be years away.
By John Miley Published
-
Farmers Face Another Tough Year As Costs Continue to Climb: The Kiplinger Letter
The Kiplinger Letter Farm income is expected to decline for a second year, while costs continue to up-end farm profitability.
By Matthew Housiaux Published
-
India's Semiconductor Sector Eyes Expansion Amid AI Chip Boom: The Kiplinger Letter
The Kiplinger Letter As Wall Street’s love affair with chip firms continues, a recent report highlights India’s plans to expand its semiconductor industry.
By John Miley Published
-
H-1B Work Visa Rules Get a Revamp
The Kiplinger Letter H-1B visas allow employers to hire high-skilled foreign workers. Regulators have finalized new rules for this visa program following last fall's proposal.
By Matthew Housiaux Published
-
Woes Continue for Banking Sector: The Kiplinger Letter
The Kiplinger Letter Regional bank stocks were hammered recently after news of New York Community Bank’s big fourth-quarter loss.
By Rodrigo Sermeño Published
-
Are College Athletes Employees of Their Schools?: The Kiplinger Letter
The Kiplinger Letter A recent ruling has ramifications for labor relations and the unionization of student athletes.
By Sean Lengell Published
-
Salton Sea Clean Energy and Lithium Project Gets Approval: The Kiplinger Letter
The Kiplinger Letter California's Salton Sea is due to see the construction of a new lithium extraction and geothermal clean energy power plant.
By Matthew Housiaux Published