Daylight Savings Time Ending

Should it pass in the House of Representatives, the semi-annual tradition of daylight savings time is set to end on Nov. 5, 2023, under the Sunshine Protection Act. The bill, approved by the Senate in 2022, must still be seen by the House of Representatives before it can be signed into act by President Joe Biden.

 The Sunshine Protection Act would end the country-wide practice, excluding Arizona, Hawaii, and other U.S. territories, of setting the clocks back an hour in the fall and one hour ahead in the spring. By doing this, we gain more morning light during the winter months and more evening daylight during the summer months.

The institution of changing the clocks was originally instituted in 1918 during World War I in hopes of decreasing the use of oil and electricity. However, this no longer being the intention, research has proven that daylight saving has little to no effect on energy conservation.

Those who proposed this change had several reasons as to why they wished to end the practice. According to NBC News, Sen. Marco Rubio, who proposed the act,“it would reduce crime, encourage kids to play outside, and lower the risk of heart attacks and car accidents.”

Research published by Current Biology in 2020 demonstrates that during the first week of the time change, fatal car crashes increase by six percent. Additionally, research suggests that the ending of the time change that causes it to get darker sooner could reduce seasonal depression.

Sleep experts have also taken a stance against the time change, claiming that it is harmful to people’s quality of rest. The changing of the clocks would mean more people would be waking up in darker hours, a harmful impact to the body’s circadian rhythm, or 24-hour cycle. In the same way, when people go to bed later as a result of the change, increasing the risk of the body’s delay in producing melatonin. 

However, there are people who are against the proposition to stop changing the clocks. According to convenience.org, The National Association of Convenience Stores projects the negative factor that ending time change would cause it to stay darker in the mornings and “we should not have kids going to school in the dark.”

Another logical reason in favor of daylight savings is that when it is lighter later in the day, it promotes people to participate in more outdoor activities and hobbies after work.

Yet, a majority of American citizens align themselves against the time change and want to have it stay permanent throughout the year. A poll done by AP-NORC in 2019 discovered that about 71 percent of Americans wish to have daylight savings/permanent time all year round instead of changing biannually.

This year, the time change, regardless of future decisions, is set to take place on Sunday, Nov. 6 when we will move the clocks back to gain an hour of sleep. In 2023, the clocks are set to move forward on March 12. 

Amidst all the roaring controversy of the Sunshine Protection Act, only “time” will tell what the outcome will be.