A This Sunday marks the semiannual clock adjustment, with most of the country "springing forward" into daylight saving time. Despite legislative efforts stalling since March 2023, Senators Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Ed Markey (D-Mass.) are renewing their push to make daylight saving time permanent.
A Rubio stated, "We're 'springing forward' but should have never 'fallen back.' My Sunshine Protection Act would end this practice of changing our clocks, addressing the inconvenience and the real impacts on our economy, energy consumption, and health," while Markey emphasized the negative effects of the biannual clock changes.
A Despite the national effort to halt clock changes, it has faced challenges with limited support. Sleep experts and health groups prefer standard time over daylight saving time, aligning better with our body clocks.
A The history of daylight saving time dates back to its adoption in 1918 as an energy conservation measure. Congress's attempt to make it permanent in the 1970s was reversed within a year due to safety concerns and public sentiment.
A s we approach the 2024 time change on Sunday, March 10, at 2 am local time, it's worth noting that Hawaii and Arizona (excluding the Navajo Nation) do not observe daylight saving time. The time switch, where clocks move forward by one hour, brings back daylight saving time after four months of standard time. The practice, initially running from April to October, was extended by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to span from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November.