Marshall takes up the fight for…light bulbs
By Norman Leahy | Wednesday, December 28th, 2011 | Politics, VirginiaContinuing his tradition of needling the federal government, Del. Bob Marshall has introduced a measure that would allow incandescent light bulbs to be manufactured and sold once again — but only in Virginia. Marshall’s HB 66:
Establishes a procedure by which a manufacturer of incandescent light bulbs (ILBs) in Virginia may obtain a license from the State Corporation Commission. Licensed manufacturers are required to distribute their light bulbs only within the Commonwealth. The license of any licensed manufacturer is subject to revocation or suspension if it violates such requirement or engages in other prohibited conduct. The Office of the Attorney General is authorized to represent, or assist in the representation of, any licensee in any action instituted by the federal government, or by any person acting pursuant to color of federal law, in which it is alleged that the licensee has violated any provision of federal law regulating the manufacture or sale of ILBs.
It’s an exercise in federalism, with a tinge of autarky. But it follows a familiar Marshall pattern. In 2011, he managed to get Virginia into the gold, silver and platinum coin business (though Ginnes are strictly commemorative) and he called for a study of an alternative currency, but that failed to get through the House. He took a swing at cap and trade, too. But most famously, he was the driving force behind the state law that exempted Virginians from the individual mandate at the heart of Obamacare The law gave Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli the grounds to file suit against federal mandate, though that particular case is currently in limbo.
And now, the fight is on to light bulbs. A 2007 law would have banned the sale of incandescent bulbs in the U.S. beginning in January. A reprieve, of sorts, was granted in the recently-passed federal budget bill.
Readers with strong stomachs will recall that General Electric led the lobbying effort to get rid of incandescents, and that the last facility making the old bulbs was located in Winchester. GE shut it down in 2010.
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About the author
Norm Leahy has written about Virginia and national politics online since 2002, beginning with One Man's Trash (OMT), and continuing through Bacon's Rebellion (both the blog and the e-zine), Sic Semper Tyrannis, NBC12's Decision Virginia, Richmond.com and Tertium Quids. He is the chief blogger at "The Score" and a producer of "The Score" radio show as well as being a Washington Post contributor.
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3 Responses to "Marshall takes up the fight for…light bulbs"
So, if we don’t ban the sale of incandescent bulbs GE would be forced to continue manufacturing them? Is that really an acceptable argument? They already stopped producing them, and now they do not want some start up company coming in and stealing some of their sales. People should, barring public safety hazard (and don’t feed me some mishyped communistic green for the planet etc.) should be able to buy the products they like to buy being that they are willing to pay the extra money per month to reduce occurrences of migraines and other such side effects, such as hazmat cleanup and fail rates, of the newer bulb. I applaud him from trying even if it means nothing. Principle is still important to many conservatives.
“Principle is still important to many conservatives.”
Agree with Joshua… and add – the light bulb bill is only a conversation starter. If nothing else, Del. Marshall raises the larger issue, which is how to retake some of the autonomy the States have meekly ceded.
Assault on the 10th Amendment is nothing new, but at least we’re talking about making a stand here in Va. Hopefully this, or something like it passes, and other States follow the example.
Extensive on the Virgina bill, on its background, and on federal v state regulations elsewhere:
http://freedomlightbulb.blogspot.com/2012/01/virginia-bulb-bill-and-its-background.html
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