Daylight Savings Time Could Be Permanent, Sunshine Protection Act Passes in Senate

By Allison Schonter

Could Daylight Saving Time become permanent? A new piece of legislation, dubbed The Sunshine Protection Act, just passed unanimously in the U.S. Senate. The bill will now move to the House of Representatives and pass there, as well. Lastly, President Joe Biden will need to back it before it can take effect. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse spearheaded the bill, with and Republican Sen. Marco Rubio co-sponsoring. 

Following the bill's passage in the Senate, Rubio said "it's an eclectic collection of members of the United States Senate in favour of what we've just done here." Reflecting on the recent time change over the weekend, when Americans across the country set their clocks forward an hour, Rubio questioned, "Why do we keep doing it? This really began back in 1918 as a practice that was supposed to save energy." However, he noted that "since then we've adjusted – today Daylight Savings Time, which started out as six months, was extended to eight months in 2005, clearly showing you what people's preference was... I think the majority of the American people's preference is just to stop the back and forth."

Ahead of the Tuesday vote, Sheldon argued in a news release on Saturday that The Sunshine Protection Act would provide both public-health and economic benefits, explaining that, "studies have shown that economic activity is reduced during Standard Time, and permanent Daylight Saving Time would lead to greater energy savings," according to The Providence Journal. Sheldon added that "spending ore standard work hours in sunlight would reduce rates of seasonal depression" and that "Americans exercise more frequently during Daylight Saving Time, reducing the risk of stroke and heart problems. Research also suggests that the extra hour of afternoon sun leads to fewer car accidents and evening robberies." He added that it was time "for Congress to take up our bipartisan legislation to make Daylight Saving Time permanent and brighten the coldest months with an extra hour of afternoon sun."

Daylight Saving Time became a standard in 1960. However, the bi-annual clock changes have long been controversial. A November 2021 poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that just 25% of Americans said they prefer to switch back and forth between standard and daylight saving time, according to the Daily Mail. Another 43%, though, said they would like to see standard time used during the entire year, with the remaining 32% stating they prefer that Daylight Saving time be used year-round.

Currently, Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands and most of Arizona do not observe Daylight Saving Time. Should the bill pass the House and make it to the president's desk, Rubio said that the change would not take place until November 2023.

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