House Republicans are again pushing the Sunshine Protection Act, which would eliminate the twice-yearly clock change and let states choose year-round daylight saving time. Supporters say more evening light would help the economy and safety; critics warn of dar
For millions of Americans, the ritual comes twice a year: one weekend, a late-night reminder, and a clock that suddenly runs an hour ahead or behind.
Now, House Republicans are trying to end that back-and-forth for good. They are again advancing the Sunshine Protection Act. a proposal that would eliminate the twice-yearly clock change and allow states to adopt year-round daylight saving time. The measure is expected to be folded into a broader transportation package moving through the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
The political momentum is real, but Congress still has the final say. Nineteen states have adopted resolutions in favor of permanent daylight saving time, yet legislative approval from Congress is still required for the transition.
Supporters point to everyday consequences—how safer evenings might feel. how commerce might move—and they also point to research that they say tracks with danger. Supporters argue that an extra hour of evening daylight could boost economic activity and improve safety. including evidence showing traffic fatalities tend to increase in the days after time changes.
There’s also a long-running case for change that starts with history. Daylight saving time first became law in 1918 during World War I as a fuel-and-energy measure. Congress later repealed and revived it before establishing the current framework under the Uniform Time Act of 1966.
Today, 48 states and Washington, D.C., observe daylight saving time. Only Arizona and Hawaii remain on standard time year-round.
Support for permanent daylight saving time spans party lines. but it’s especially common among lawmakers from coastal states who favor more evening light. California Rep. Jay Obernolte put the argument bluntly when he told The Post. “The evidence is overwhelming and compelling that it’s not good for us to be changing back and forth twice a year.”.
Critics see a different tradeoff, and it’s one that lands hardest in winter. They argue permanent daylight saving time would mean darker winter mornings, particularly across parts of the Midwest and eastern U.S., where some communities could see sunrises after 9 a.m.
In the Senate, Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton has opposed changing the current system. During a Senate speech last year, he warned that permanent daylight saving time would make winter mornings “dark and dismal” for millions of Americans.
Sleep experts have added their own pressure to the debate. Some have argued that permanent standard time would better match the body’s natural circadian rhythm.
Public opinion has not lined up neatly behind the current system either. An AP-NORC survey of nearly 1. 300 adults last October found little support for the practice of switching clocks twice a year: just 12% said they wanted to keep changing clocks twice a year. More than half—56%—favored permanent daylight saving time, while 42% preferred permanent standard time.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly supported year-round daylight saving time and would likely sign the legislation if it reached his desk.
Still, the effort faces a familiar obstacle: it doesn’t exist in a vacuum, and it has to clear Congress. A similar version of the Sunshine Protection Act cleared the Senate in 2022 before stalling in the House.
The next fight is likely to be about timing again—not just on the clock, but in the legislative calendar. The committee where the proposal is expected to move. the broader transportation package it may be attached to. and whether House leaders can keep it moving this time will determine whether Americans get one less twice-a-year chore—or another cycle of debate that starts every fall.
Sunshine Protection Act daylight saving time Uniform Time Act House Energy and Commerce Committee permanent daylight saving time Jay Obernolte Tom Cotton Arizona Hawaii Trump transportation package
So they just… stop changing the clocks? Finally.
I don’t even know which one is better, daylight or standard, they both feel wrong when the clocks change. But if it helps safety or whatever, sure I guess. Also Congress “has final say” like they won’t screw it up.
Wait, so this is year-round daylight saving time but people still complain about it? Wouldn’t that just mean it gets dark super early in winter anyway? I’m confused how it boosts the economy if everyone’s still commuting at the same times.
Every time they do the clock thing my grandma ends up calling like “why is it 7 when it’s supposed to be 6” lol. But I swear these proposals only happen because somebody posted TikTok about sunsets. And Congress requiring it is gonna drag forever, like everything else. Also didn’t they already do this before in the 60s? Feels like the same fight, different year.