Isn't part of the reason it's arguable in the case of CFLs that CFLs are actually environmentally worse? Whether that offsets the "using one tenth as many" (or whatever) is a factor too, but the problems of safe disposal should certainly be a concern.

(LEDs are, I believe, pretty inarguably environmentally better, but as you say financially not so hot. That said, if the government is going to mandate something for environmental reasons, CFLs are a remarkably illogical choice. If the government is going to mandate something because someone in the industry bribed them to, while pretending it's about the environment, well, that's business as usual and sounds a lot more likely to me.)

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The only thing mandated is stopping the manufacture of incandescent bulbs by the deadline -- what people choose to use afterward is up to them. CFLs are one of the best alternatives, and not so hazardous to dispose as people are being led to think. I'd personally go with LEDs all the way if I could. :)

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Hopefully it's the manufacture of bulbs below a specific efficiency (as claimed elsewhere in comments here) rather than just incandescents, since that would just be weird and nonsensical - many halogen bulbs are less efficient than incandescents.

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Halogens are a type of incandescent, and sometimes more efficient than the type we're usually familiar with (the A types we put in our table lamps) -- it depends on the bulb used. (I would've gotten an "A" in my Lighting class if I'd been able to finish my residential lighting project.)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halogen_lamp

But yeah: it's a ban on incandescents. Here's an FAQ:
http://money.usnews.com/money/business-economy/articles/2007/12/19/faq-the-end-of-the-light-bulb-as-we-know-it

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===I need to sometime actually bother to look at the law...incandescents are actually a really great tech for when you need both heat AND light in a space, especially if you are out in the woods like I am. (a degree or two of heat with light under the house can be quite a help to keep things from freezing...things like that. (chuckles)

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