Illinois ends fluorescent tube sales on January 1, 2027. The tubes you pull still need a plan.
Public Act 103-0799 bans selling new linear and pin-base fluorescent lamps in Illinois from January 1, 2027, a year after screw-base CFLs. It covers sale as a new product, not lamps already installed.
- Linear tubes and CFLs
- Pre-1979 ballasts kept apart
- Batteries in the same load
- A record for every job
Public Act 103-0799 is a sales ban. It does not address lamps already installed, and its text names no penalty or enforcing agency. The pressure arrives at replacement. Once new tubes are hard to buy, fixtures get converted, and the lamps you remove still fall under Illinois waste rules.
Five dates that shape a lamp plan in Illinois.
Two new laws run side by side. Public Act 103-0799 phases out fluorescent lamp sales, and Public Act 103-1033 sets battery stewardship dates. A retrofit between 2026 and 2028 can meet both, on top of waste rules that date back to 1998.
- 1998
Lamps join universal waste
Illinois amends its Universal Waste Rule, 35 Ill. Adm. Code 733, to cover lamps. Businesses gain a simpler path than full RCRA rules.
- Aug 9, 2024
Ban signed
PA 103-0799 (HB 2363) adds 415 ILCS 5/21.8 to the Environmental Protection Act. Illinois becomes the tenth state with such a ban.
- Jan 1, 2026
Screw-base CFLs
Screw-base and bayonet-base CFL sales end, Section 21.8(c). Battery producers must also be in a stewardship plan by then.
- Jan 1, 2027
Tubes and pin-base CFLs
Linear lamps of every diameter, 0.5 to 8 ft, U-bend and circular, plus pin-base CFLs, Section 21.8(d).
- Jan 1, 2028
Two deadlines
The no-LED-alternative exemption covers sales only through this date. Covered batteries must go through approved methods, not landfill.
Sources: Illinois General Assembly, Public Act 103-0799 and 415 ILCS 5/21.8. Public Act 103-1033. Illinois EPA, fluorescent lamp guidance. Inside.lighting on the tenth state. For the battery side of the same jobs, see battery recycling.
What the Act covers, and the eight exemptions.
Three lamp groups are covered, on two dates. Eight uses are exempt. Check this table before assuming a specialty lamp is gone, and before assuming a standard office tube is exempt.
The Act covers lamps sold "as a new manufactured product". It says nothing about lamps already installed, which is why the table has no row for them.
| Lamp type or use | Status | Detail in the Act |
|---|---|---|
| Screw-base and bayonet-base CFLs | Sales end Jan 1, 2026 | Section 21.8(c) |
| Pin-base CFLs | Sales end Jan 1, 2027 | Section 21.8(d) |
| Linear fluorescent lamps | Sales end Jan 1, 2027 | All diameters, lengths of 0.5 to 8 ft, plus U-bend and circular shapes |
| 1. Image capture and projection | Exempt | Category as listed |
| 2. High UV-content lamps | Exempt | Germicidal, disinfection, fly trapping, ozone generation, coral and sunlamp uses |
| 3. Medical or veterinary diagnosis or treatment | Exempt | Category as listed |
| 4. Pharmaceutical manufacturing and quality control | Exempt | Category as listed |
| 5. Spectroscopy and photometric applications | Exempt | Category as listed |
| 6. Research institutions | Exempt | Category as listed |
| 7. Replacement lamps for motor vehicles | Exempt | Vehicles manufactured before January 1, 2020 |
| 8. No LED alternative available | Exempt until Jan 1, 2028 | Lamps sold or offered for sale on or before January 1, 2028. The Act does not define "LED alternative" |
Scroll the table sideways to see every column.
Source: 415 ILCS 5/21.8(c) to (e), added by Public Act 103-0799 (Illinois General Assembly). Wording summarized. Exemption 8 is the only one tied to a sales date, and exemption 7 is tied to vehicle age. Read the statute before relying on an exemption. Not legal advice.
What Illinois asks of the lamps you remove.
The sales ban changes what you can buy. Illinois EPA's lamp guidance governs what you do with the old ones, and the business rules differ from the household rules. Each row cites the rule or document behind it, so you can check it against your own situation.
Businesses may follow the Illinois Universal Waste Rule or the full RCRA hazardous waste rules. Illinois EPA is direct: "You must choose one of these options."
Mark each container "Universal Waste Lamps", "Waste Lamps" or "Used Lamps". Any one of the three works, as long as every container carries one.
Up to one year, the same limit as the federal rule. Date each container or keep a log, so the clock is easy to show at an inspection.
Allowed "only to reduce their volume, and only at the site where waste lamps are generated". Crushing somewhere else is not on the list.
Households "may dispose of their used lamps as municipal waste", though Illinois EPA encourages recycling. Businesses choose between the two rule sets above instead.
Non-leaking PCB ballasts are municipal solid waste in Illinois. Leaking ones are special waste and need a manifest. On our pickups, we keep pre-1979 and unlabeled ballasts apart from the rest of the load.
Removed lamps and PCB ballasts "must be permanently taken out of service and disposed of in accordance with local codes and ordinances". Resale is forbidden. The form does not explicitly require disposal documentation.
Under the federal rule, a site holding 5,000 kg or more of universal waste at once is a large quantity handler. It needs an EPA ID first.
Illinois EPA publishes a list of fluorescent lamp recyclers. Whoever you use, ask for a record of what was collected and where it went.
From January 1, 2028, covered batteries must go through approved methods, which bars landfill. Covered types include portable and medium-format batteries, such as e-bike and scooter packs.
Sources: Illinois EPA, fluorescent lamp guidance, which also links its list of lamp recyclers; ComEd, 2024 Custom Incentives Application; Public Act 103-1033. Running the retrofit? See recycling for contractors. Illinois rules shown. Local rules can be stricter. Not legal advice.
An Illinois lamp checklist for the months ahead.
Use the time before the tube deadline to count, stage and schedule. Supply of replacement tubes will shrink, so a planned conversion beats a string of failures. The sales ban requires none of this. For how lamps are packed and shipped, see lamp recycling.
- Count the linear tubes and pin-base CFLs still in service
- Note any lamps that fit one of the eight exemptions
- Choose universal waste or full RCRA rules, and record the choice
- Label containers with one of the three Illinois EPA phrases
- Date every container and ship within one year
- Keep lamps whole; crush only on site, only to reduce volume
- Sort T12 magnetic ballasts from T8 and T5 units
- Pull covered batteries before the 2028 landfill bar
- Keep ComEd-funded removals out of any resale
- File a recycling record for every job
- Schedule pickup around the retrofit, not after it
- Recycle tenant lamps along with building lamps
- Seal broken lamps in their own closed container
- Brief the staff who handle lamps on the procedure
Sources: Illinois EPA lamp guidance; 415 ILCS 5/21.8; EPA guidance on T12 ballasts; Public Act 103-1033; ComEd, 2024 Custom Incentives Application.
What Illinois buildings are asking.
Short answers on the sales ban, the exemptions and the disposal rules. Each one is tied to the Illinois text or agency guidance behind it.
Is Illinois banning fluorescent bulbs?
Illinois is banning their sale, not their use. Under Public Act 103-0799, screw-base and bayonet-base CFLs could not be sold new from January 1, 2026. Pin-base CFLs and linear fluorescent lamps follow on January 1, 2027. Eight exemptions apply, including high UV-content and research uses.
Can businesses still use fluorescent lamps they currently own?
The Act does not address lamps already installed. Its ban covers selling, offering to sell or distributing a lamp in Illinois "as a new manufactured product". Tubes in your ceilings today are outside that wording. When they fail, replacement stock is what gets harder to find.
When will T8 fluorescent bulbs be banned?
In Illinois, new T8 tubes cannot be sold from January 1, 2027. The Act's linear lamp definition covers all diameters and lengths from 0.5 to 8 feet, including U-bend and circular shapes. A lamp with no LED alternative may still be sold through January 1, 2028.
Do fluorescent bans apply to existing buildings?
Not directly. The Illinois Act regulates sales, so an existing building can keep its working lamps. The building's waste rules still apply the day lamps come out. Spent business lamps go under the Illinois Universal Waste Rule or full RCRA rules, never into the household trash allowance.
What counts as an "LED alternative" under the exemption?
The Act does not say. Exemption 8 covers a CFL or linear lamp "sold or offered for sale on or before January 1, 2028". It applies only "if there is no LED alternative available". Treat it as a short window for unusual lamps, not a reason to delay a retrofit.
What should an Illinois business do with removed tubes?
Choose a rule set and follow it. Illinois EPA lets businesses use the Universal Waste Rule or full RCRA rules. Under universal waste, label containers, store up to one year and keep lamps whole. Our compliance guide covers the federal side of those steps.
Can households put fluorescent lamps in the trash in Illinois?
Households may; businesses may not use that allowance. Illinois EPA says households "may dispose of their used lamps as municipal waste", while encouraging recycling. Businesses follow the Universal Waste Rule or full RCRA rules instead. For lamps from tenant apartments, ask Illinois EPA which rule applies.
Are germicidal UV lamps banned in Illinois?
No. High UV-content lamps are the second of the Act's eight exemptions. The Act lists germicidal, disinfection, fly trapping, ozone generation, coral and sunlamp uses. Those lamps can still be sold after January 1, 2027. Confirm the lamp's actual use first.
Does the ban cover U-bend and circular tubes?
Yes. The Act's definition of a linear fluorescent lamp covers all diameters and lengths from 0.5 to 8 feet. It also includes U-bend and circular shapes. Their sale as new products ends in Illinois on January 1, 2027, unless one of the eight exemptions applies.
Who enforces the Illinois fluorescent ban?
The Act's text does not name one. Public Act 103-0799 adds Section 21.8 to the Environmental Protection Act, but it specifies no penalty and no enforcing agency. That does not change the waste side: removed lamps still follow Illinois EPA's universal waste or hazardous waste rules.
Is Illinois the only state with a fluorescent ban?
No. Illinois is the tenth state with such a ban. Vermont's took effect in 2024; California, Colorado, Oregon and Rhode Island in 2025; Hawaii, Maine and Minnesota in 2026. Washington follows in 2029. Illinois is the next linear tube deadline on that list, on January 1, 2027.
Can distributors keep selling tubes already in stock?
None of the Act's eight exemptions mentions existing inventory. From January 1, 2027, the ban covers linear tubes sold "as a new manufactured product". The text gives stock bought earlier no separate allowance. One exemption runs to January 1, 2028, where no LED alternative exists. Ask counsel before selling through.
Can lamps be crushed on site in Illinois?
Only in a narrow way. Illinois EPA allows crushing "only to reduce their volume, and only at the site where waste lamps are generated". Lamps cannot be hauled somewhere else to be crushed under that allowance. Keeping lamps whole in labeled containers avoids the question entirely.
How are PCB ballasts handled in Illinois?
By whether they leak. Illinois EPA treats non-leaking PCB ballasts as municipal solid waste and leaking ones as special waste that needs a manifest. Federal guidance presumes PCBs in pre-July 2, 1979 or unlabeled ballasts. We keep pre-1979 and unlabeled ballasts apart from the rest of the load.
What does the Illinois battery law change for businesses?
Mostly where batteries can end up. Public Act 103-1033 put producers in a stewardship plan from January 1, 2026 and calls for collection sites by December 31, 2026. From January 1, 2028, covered batteries must go through approved methods, which bars landfill.
Does a ComEd incentive require disposal paperwork?
Not explicitly, in the custom program we checked. ComEd's 2024 Custom Incentives Application says removed lamps and PCB ballasts must be taken out of service. They must be disposed of under local codes, and resale is forbidden. A recycling record for every job is a simple way to show that.
Tell us what's coming out before January 2027.
Rough counts are enough: tubes, CFLs, ballasts and batteries by building, plus your retrofit dates. We schedule pickup around your job, and we reply with a written quote.