The 'How Many Legislators Does it Take to Change a Lightbulb Act' would ban incandescent lightbulbs by 2012 in favor of energy-saving compact fluorescent lightbulbs. 'Incandescent lightbulbs were first developed almost 125 years ago, and since that time they have undergone no major modifications,' California Assemblyman Lloyd Levine said on Tuesday. 'Meanwhile, they remain incredibly inefficient, converting only about 5 percent of the energy they receive into light.'