Rebates For Equipment Affected By Legislation

In 2009, Congress passed legislation that established efficiency standards for general service lighting. While the law did not specifically outlaw any technologies, it set efficiency standards that essentially phases out older technologies in use at many businesses today.

In July 2012, manufacturers will stop producing the fluorescent lighting that do not meet the new efficiency standards (T12 and 700 Series T8 lamps). Regulations affecting standard A19 lamps and incandescent/halogen reflector lamps require them to be phased out between July 2012 and 2014 depending on wattage. Customers who are using these old technologies will have to upgrade their lighting.

Rebates currently exist for many of the possible upgrades from the older products and can help lower the cost of the project. It is possible that due to the legislation, the incentive levels for the replacement products may fall or stop completely once the old technologies are phased out. Several organizations have already publicized their intent to change their rebate structures once the laws are in effect.

Many options exist to replace your old lighting, so evaluate them in in terms of light qualify, energy savings, up front cost and rebate opportunities to choose the best replacement for you. If you have old, inefficient technologies in your facilities, consider upgrading sooner than mandated so you won't miss out on any of the valuable rebates.

Click here to see an example of how one retailer took advantage of LED rebates.