How many mayors does it take sell Texans on a light bulb?

Well, five are trying.

The mayors of Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, El Paso and Austin held a news conference on Friday to push the use of compact fluorescent light bulbs, saying they'll save residents money and reduce the need for new power plants.

"Our state bird is the Mockingbird. Our state flower is the Bluebonnet and that's the state blub of Texas right there," said San Antonio Mayor Phil Hardberger.

It's no joke. The group of mayors want Texans to see the light - the fluorescent light.

City leaders say replacing incandescent bulbs with fluorescent ones will save residents money and reduce the need for new power plants. "They cut your electrical use by about 80-percent versus a standard bulb and they last about 10 years, " says Hardberger.

Meeting in San Antonio Friday, the mayors -- including Austin's Will Wynn -- admit fluorescent bulbs costs more, but in the long run they say it's worth the cost. The San Antonio mayor says replacing 8 million incandescent bulbs has the same effect on pollution reduction as removing 55,000 cars from the road.

One by one, the mayors lit the fluorescent bulbs for their cities. Now they're asking for others to do the same.

"A very simple act can start us down that road and that is changing the light bulbs in your homes and in your businesses," says Hardberger.

The goal is to have 100 percent compliance by 2008.

Wynn said Austin has found that spending money to encourage conservation is far more cost effective that building more plants to absorb swollen demand.

"We'd rather spend money on conservation than spend money on building power plants," he said.