On Sunday, March 12, at 2am, we set our clocks ahead once again in accordance with Daylight Saving Time. “Fall back, Spring forward” is something that most of us have gotten used to over the years. While we might look forward to an extra hour of sleep when we set our clocks back in the fall, most of us dread losing an hour of sleep in the spring. Overall, this practice of changing our clocks twice yearly is inconvenient and disruptive to many, and there have been proposals calling to abolish this practice. Most recently, in 2021, Florida Senator Marc Rubio proposed the “Sunshine Protection Act,” which would result in a permanent Daylight Saving. This would end changing our clocks each spring and fall and would result in later sunrises and sunsets, with more daylight in the evening. Supporters believe that this would result in many positive effects, while critics state that farmers and children would be adversely affected.
History
Daylight Saving (not “Savings” as most believe) Time dates to World War I, when President Roosevelt enacted the time change to conserve energy, similar to Europe. It was then discontinued, but some states still continued the practice of changing their clocks. During World War II, Daylight Saving Time was once again reinstated for one year. After that, some individual states continued the practice until 1966 when Congress passed the Uniform Time Act. This resulted in uniform start and end dates for Daylight Saving Time, but allowed individual states to maintain standard time if they desired. All the states in the US observe Daylight Saving Time except for Hawaii and parts of Arizona, in addition to the US territories, including Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Legislation
Changing our clock in the spring and fall is a nuisance to many, and the Sunshine Protection Act would result in permanent Daylight Saving Time. The Sunshine Protection Act is a bill which was originally proposed in 2018 by Florida Senator Marc Rubio, who reintroduced it on March 9, 2021, naming it the “Sunshine Protection Act.” The Senate voted unanimously to pass this bill on March 15, 2022, but the bill failed to pass in the House of Representatives, and it expired with the previous Congress. However, Senator Rubio reintroduced the bill this month. This permanent Daylight Saving Time would result in more sunlight in the late afternoon and early evening, which would allow more people to go out after school and after work since it is known that people go out more when there is more sunlight. Proponents of this Act point out that this is beneficial to the US economy because more people would shop and go out in the evening as well as participate in additional activities such as golfing and eating out, resulting in increased spending. In addition, data suggests that having the extra hour of sunlight in the evening results in decreased crime and decreased traffic accidents.
In addition to these benefits, permanent Daylight Saving Time would result in fewer negative effects on health. This is because changing the clocks forward for Daylight Saving Time has been shown to have negative effects on health. In a study in 2021 by The University of Alabama at Birmingham, researchers showed that there was a 10% increase in heart attacks in March for several weeks after the time change occurred. Another study investigating mining injuries found a 6 percent increase in mining injuries on the Monday following the start of Daylight Saving Time. These effects were thought to be due to disruption of the Circadian Rhythm and its resulting effect of lack of sleep. In another study, it was found that on the Monday after Daylight Saving Time began, workers “cyberloafed” or wasted time on the computer surfing the web, looking at things not related to work at much higher rates than usual. This translates into lost productivity and lost money for the US Economy. While there appears to be many positive effects of ending Daylight Saving Time, opponents of the Sunshine Protection Act state that farmers and children would be most affected, as farmers would have to work in the dark longer and children would have to wait at school bus stops longer in the dark in the morning.
The Case for Standard Time
Some critics of the Sunshine Protection Act believe that Standard Time, which begins in November, is preferable to permanent Daylight Saving Time. This is because they believe that Standard Time is more aligned with the body’s Circadian Rhythm. This is because in Daylight Saving Time, there is more sunlight in the evening and more darkness in the morning, which can make not only going to bed on time more difficult, but also waking in the morning more difficult.
Conclusion
One thing that is obvious is that adjusting the clock forward in the spring and back in the fall can wreak havoc on our bodies and schedules. In the spring, losing an hour of sleep has been shown to result in increased heart attacks, traffic accidents, and emergency room visits. The loss of sleep can result in diminished ability to concentrate as well as mood problems. In the fall, the extra hour of sleep appears to have fewer negative consequences, but is still disruptive to one’s schedule.
It is up to the House of Representatives to vote on the Sunshine Protection Act, and President Biden to sign off on it. This would address an obsolete practice which is no longer needed. It is obvious that the many benefits of the Act on health, sleep, and the economy outweigh its downsides. Hopefully, one day soon, our days of springing forward and falling back will be a thing of the past.
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