Here’s When To Turn Back Your Clock

Topline

The fourth consecutive push by legislators to make daylight saving time the new standard time across the country has made little progress since it was most recently introduced in the House and Senate, and Americans in 48 states are consequently preparing to turn back the clocks this weekend and embrace shorter daylight hours through next spring.

A man sets the clock forward.

Europa Press via Getty Images

Key Facts

Daylight saving time will end and clocks will “fall back” one hour on Sunday, November 5, marking a return to standard time that millions of Americans have said they’d rather do without.

A proposed federal law to make daylight saving time permanent and eliminate the twice-per-year clock shift—called the Sunshine Protection Act— has been introduced in every Congress since 2018 and passed by the Senate in 2021, but it was ignored by the House that year, and its 2023 reintroduction has been stuck in committee since March 1.

State legislatures have considered more than 500 bills in the last decade to address time change concerns and 19 states have passed bills or resolutions in support of a Congressional move to eliminate switches.

Those in support of a permanent daylight savings have said it would give the economy a boost, particularly in hospitality businesses like restaurants and hotels that could benefit from more light toward the end of the day, CBS News reported.

A 2008 Department of Energy study found people use about 0.5% less electricity per day during daylight savings, the equivalent of 1.3 trillion watt-hours over four weeks.

Marco Rubio (R-Florida), who introduced the Sunshine Protection Act bill in the Senate, has called the ritual of time changing “stupid” and Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) has said a permanent daylight savings would “deliver more sun, more smiles and brighter skies.”

Was Daylight Savings Time Created To Help Farmers?

It’s a common myth that daylight savings time was put in place to help farmers adapt to seasonal changes, and the agriculture industry actually has a long history of lobbying against time changes. Many farmers say the changes disrupt the schedule of their livestock and the amount of time put in by farmworkers.

Big Number

2. Two states—Hawaii and Arizona—do not observe daylight saving time.

Contra

Some Health groups and sleep experts, like the American Medical Association, say the nation should commit to standard time and eliminate daylight savings time altogether—the opposite of what the Sunshine Protection Act would do. The association says “springing forward” is associated with health risks like increased heart problems, mood disorders and car crashes, and that some people never adjust to daylight savings time. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine also advocates for permanent standard time because it “matches our body’s internal clock,” as does the National Safety Council and the National Parent Teacher Association. The United States tried to make daylight savings time permanent in the 1970s, but reversed the decision after a dozen kids were hurt or killed trying to get to school before the sun came up.

Crucial Quote

“Committing to standard time has health benefits and allows us to end the biannual tug of war between our biological and alarm clocks,” American Medical Association Trustee Alexander Ding said.

Key Background

Daylight savings time was first enacted in Canada in 1908. It became commonplace in the United States in the late 1910s and was used during World War I and II to add more daylight hours and conserve energy resources. After the war, local governments decided whether or not to observe daylight savings on a jurisdictional basis until 1966, when it was standardized by federal law.

Surprising Fact

Researchers with the University of Virginia and Cornell University found that 7% fewer robberies occur during daylight savings time, when light lasts longer into the night, than after the clocks change in the fall. A separate study by a pair of Rutgers University criminology researchers found that crime rates drop by as much as 30% during daylight hours.