Could it Be the End of Daylight Saving Time?
Written by Sydney Weber
Photo by Greta Chabot
On March 15th, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed the Sunshine Protection Act, which would make daylight saving time permanent and abolish the long-held practice of changing the clocks. The bill is currently in the U.S. House of Representatives, and then, if approved, it heads to the President.
The Sunshine Protection Act would keep the shifting hour of daylight permanently in the evening. However, this means that during the winter, the sun would rise much later than usual, which could be troubling for some Northern and Eastern states where the sun already rises late during the winter. Many proponents of the Sunshine Protection Act state that it would help kids play outside later, reduce seasonal depression, save energy, and promote economic activity as stores would be able to stay open later.
Critics of the bill say it may disrupt sleep patterns to not have as much morning light during the winter. In 2020, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine called for the elimination of daylight saving time and stated that the change in time “disrupts the body’s natural clock, and could cause an increase in cardiovascular upsets and car accidents.”
“I don't think I support the daylight saving time bill because sometimes I like to get that extra hour of sleep in the fall. I’d also be way more tired getting up for school if it was darker in the morning and I really just wouldn’t want to come,” East Ridge graduate Brynn Miroslavich stated. Many of those opposed to the bill also have raised the concern that it would negatively impact students, especially those in high school, if they have to drive to school in the morning while it is still dark.
Daylight saving time was formalized in 1966 with the Uniform Time Act, but was first introduced during WW1. It was originally proposed by Benjamin Franklin so that people could make more use of daylight as the seasons change. With the exception of Arizona and Hawaii, the US switches from standard time (November to March) to daylight saving time (March to November) every year. Daylight saving time moves an hour of daylight from the morning to the evening so that the sun rises and sets later.
According to Florida Senator Marco Rubio, the change proposed in the Sunshine Protection Act would not take place until November of 2023. The bill has made no movement in the House, but it is possible that this could be our last time turning the clocks back this November. Rubio was the main sponsor of this act, and states, “I know this is not the most important issue confronting America, but it’s one of those issues where there’s a lot of agreement. If we can get this passed, we don’t have to do this stupidity anymore.”
In 1974, during the middle of an energy crisis, President Richard Nixon signed a bill that allowed the United States to experiment with permanent daylight saving time for two years in order to reduce energy consumption. This change ended up being very unpopular, and Nixon was forced to end the practice a year early. Without wide support for the Sunshine Act, it is possible that a failed switch to daylight saving time could happen yet again now.
