New Federal Lamp Standards to Cost $90M, Close Factories

Sam Kazman, general counsel for the Competitive Enterprise Institute and director of the Center of Law and Litigation, said the latest Energy Department regulations seem par for the course for federal agencies that are constantly on the lookout for more control and power.

The regulations "seem to follow the same pattern of DOE's previous energy efficiency mandates, for everything ranging from showerheads to laundry washers to incandescent bulbs — an admission that the items will cost more to purchase, but that the higher costs will pay for itself over some number of years through reduced energy costs, all with no reduction in how well they function," Kazman told Newsmax.

But that line of thought never pans out, Kazman said.

"Time and time again, this has turned out to be nonsense," Kazman said. "And we shouldn't be surprised. If these new high-efficiency items are so great, then why does DOE need to force consumers to buy them? And if consumers are being forced to buy them, isn't that a very strong indicator that they're not so great after all?"