DeGette Bill to Promote LED Lighting Use Passes the House

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Representatives Diana DeGette (D-CO) and Renee Ellmers (R-NC) led their colleagues to pass H.R. 4444, a bipartisan bill that will update the Department of Energy’s conservation standards and continue to encourage the innovations in LED lighting that have accelerated over the last decade.

“By ensuring our country’s energy conservation standards are up to date with the latest developments in high-tech lighting, we can keep our country on the cutting edge of energy-efficient appliances,” said Rep. DeGette. “This common-sense bill will allow the LED lighting revolution to continue and, in turn, help lower energy prices for every American business and household. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Senate to pass this bill through their chamber so that we can get it to the President’s desk as soon as possible.”

H.R. 4444, the EPS Improvement Act of 2016, will clarify and modernize energy conservation rules for External Power Supply Drivers (EPS) set in place by the Energy Policy Act of 2005. These rules stated that certain lighting products could be defined as an External Power Supply (EPS), such as certain Light Emitting Diodes (LED) and Organic Light Emitting Diodes (OLED) drivers. This, however, was not the intent of Congress, as LED and OLED drivers were not on the market at the time the Congressional definition was drafted.

While EPS use a single stage power conversion, SSL drivers utilize a two stage power conversion design. The DOE EPS efficiency standards are based on a single stage design, making it impossible for LED and OLED to meet the standard.

The EPS Improvement Act of 2016 passed the House of Representatives by voice-vote after receiving unanimous support in its Energy and Commerce Committee markup.