The U.S. Senate recently approved a bill making daylight saving time permanent. Photo credit: Getty Images
WASHINGTON — This weekend we change the clocks again, but new bills in Congress may let states choose to keep Daylight Saving Time permanent.
Yes, we keep talking about this on the state and national level.
Rep. Chris Stewart, R-Utah, is sponsoring the Daylight Act, which would allow a state to stay on daylight saving time permanently if they choose.
“I do think it helps people, helps families,” Stewart told KSL NewsRadio. “A lot of people don’t like their kids coming home from school when it’s nearly dark.”
Stewart added, “Some of the polling is, something north of 80% of Americans support this.”
Stewart’s bill is not the only one addressing this issue in Congress. The Deseret News reports Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida and a bipartisan set of co-sponsors have been trying for several years to pass the Sunshine Protection Act .
That bill would allow 16 states to end the time change. Those states have already voted to make the change, including Utah. They just need congressional approval.
The senators say the bill would improve the overall health and safety of Americans, and could help reduce the risk of seasonal depression in the winter.
Utah passed a bill in 2020 to stay on daylight saving time permanently if Congress approves and if enough Western states around us agree.
California, Idaho, Oregon, Washington and Wyoming have all passed bills to remain on daylight saving time, and New Mexico is considering the change.
States can stay on standard time throughout the year if they would like without action by Congress. That’s what Arizona and Hawaii have done.
Experts say changing clocks is bad for our bodies. They used to survey which you would prefer, daylight or standard time, but it seems most people say just pick a time and stop changing.
Daylight saving time begins Sunday at 2 a.m. when we “spring forward.” We will have to then “fall back” to standard time November 7, 2021, unless one of these bills becomes law.