That time of year has come again: many Americans adjusted their clocks and circadian rhythms when Daylight Saving Time ended on Sunday.
This means that in most states, mornings will be brighter and nights darker.
Millions of people across the country had their clocks set back one hour – a welcome adjustment for those seeking more sleep and criticized by those who consider it an inconvenience.
Here’s what you need to know.
How many states observe Daylight Saving Time?
All U.S. states observe Daylight Saving Time except Hawaii and Arizona, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL). However, the portion of the Navajo Nation located in Arizona does observe Daylight Saving Time. The U.S. territories of Guam, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Northern Mariana Islands also do not change their clocks.
Many more want it. Nineteen states have passed laws that would create year-round daylight saving time for their residents, according to the NCSL.
“As federal law currently does not allow permanent daylight saving time, Congress would have to act before states could adopt changes,” according to the NCSL.
Many Americans want daylight saving time year-round
Only 12% of U.S. adults support the current daylight saving time system, while 47% oppose it, according to an AP-NORC poll released.
And 56% of adults surveyed said they prefer permanent daylight saving time, with less light in the morning and more light at night, according to the poll. Forty-two percent said they prefer permanent standard time, with more light in the morning and less light at night.
Making Daylight Saving Time Permanent Fails Again
President Trump urged Congress to pass legislation that would make daylight saving time permanent — which, if enacted, would end the debate over whether the U.S. should change clocks twice a year.
The House and Senate should “push hard for more light at the end of the day,” the president wrote in April on Truth Social.
But an attempt to block clock changes again stalled in Congress.
The Sunshine Protection Act, sponsored by Republican Sen. Rick Scott of Florida with bipartisan support, would make daylight saving time the permanent standard time. Earlier this week, Republican Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas objected to Scott’s request to advance the measure by unanimous consent, arguing that permanent daylight saving time would make winter “a dark and gloomy time for millions of Americans.”
“By setting clocks back one hour in winter, permanent daylight saving time would make the winter sunrise occur at an absurdly late hour, depriving Americans of morning sunlight essential for our safety and well-being,” Cotton said Tuesday on the Senate floor.
Former Sen. Marco Rubio, also a Republican from Florida, had previously championed the bill, introducing it for the first time in 2018 and reintroducing it in 2021. The Senate passed the bill in 2022, but it never reached a vote in the House.
Source: npy.org by Chandelis Duster