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EPAct
Bill May Extend to 2012 with Even More Savings
On March 8,
2007, the Energy Efficiency Incentives Act of 2007 was
introduced in both the
US House of
Representatives and the Senate; it is a provision to extend
the
energy-efficient commercial buildings tax deduction carried
in
EPAct 2005 to
2012, with an additional two years to build. The
extension
notably increases the square-foot tax deduction for
buildings
with 50 percent
whole-building energy cost savings from $1.80 to
$2.25. It also
raises from $.60 to $.75 the square foot tax reduction for
single systems,
such as
lighting, HVAC and the building envelope, if savings meet
the criteria set
forth in the
legislation.
04/’07
Electrical Contractor
Bulb?
NEMA Responds
The members of
the Lamp Section of the National
Electrical
Manufacturers Association have announced a joint industry
commitment to
support public
policies that will transform the U.S. market to more
energy-efficient
lighting within
a decade. There is a growing number of proposals at the
international,
state and local
levels that would eliminate the presence of certain
general-service
incandescent
lamps in the marketplace. Citing this as an issue of
national importance,
NEMA is calling
on the U.S. government to devise a federal solution in order
to
avoid confusion
in the marketplace.
Posted April 9,
2007 www.nema.org
Bulbs in
a New Light: CFLs Cost Less than They Used to and Produce a
More
Natural
Light
Today's
energy-efficient light bulb has undergone a makeover. Once
criticized as
expensive, slow to power up, blue in tone and bulky in
shape, many
compact
fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) are now indistinguishable
from standard
incandescents.
For these reasons -- as well as a growing collective concern
about the
state of the
environment -- fluorescents are taking over store shelves,
most recently at
Wal-Mart, which
has pledged to sell 100 million CFL light bulbs in one year.
Australia plans
to phase out incandescents by 2010.
03/07 Saint
Paul Pioneer Press
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