On March 15th, 2022, the Senate unanimously voted to pass a bill that would end the biannual shifting of clocks. This would also make daylight savings time permanent. Although this bill has been passed through the Senate, it has yet to get through the House of Representatives and additionally be signed by President Joe Biden. The bill, known as the Sunshine Protection Act, was reintroduced by Senator Marco Rubio. Some senators did not have any idea of the quick proposal of the bill at all but quickly consented to it.
Benjamin Franklin is most known for first suggesting moving the clocks back in the 18th century. Time was set based on the people managing the clocks in cities, along with according to the sun. There was not a general set time, which became a conflict for railway companies who were trying to deliver their passengers on time. After the British adopted a standard time for the railroads throughout their country, the Americans followed suit in 1883, in which four timezones were adopted.
Franklin’s idea was reintroduced when William Willet suggested the shifting of clocks to British lawmakers, but this idea was rejected until implemented a few years later due to World War I. Germany in 1916 also utilized daylights saving time, then Western nations established it, including the United States. This idea was constantly revised. In 1974, the country moved to permanent daylight savings time. President Richard M. Nixon strongly supported the cause, as he believed it would conserve energy, during the energy crisis the United States was facing at that time. However, they switched back to biannually shifting clocks due to nationwide discontent. Farmers disliked daylight time (they favored early light), and so did a few states and U.S. territories that opted out of the time.
However, some believed daylight savings was beneficial because it saves energy. Yet there was no evidence that proved that daylight savings substantially contributed to the increase or decrease in energy usage.
“The loss of that one hour of sleep seems to impact us for days afterwards. It also can cause havoc on the sleeping patterns of our kids and our pets.” House Energy and Commerce committee’s chairman, Representative Frank Pallone, mentioned. Additionally, he cited a 2019 poll that 71% of Americans preferred to not switch their clocks biannually.
Rubio, with Senator Patty Murray, also argued that daylights can increase risk in heart attacks and strokes. Researchers have also discovered that daylights disrupted sleep cycles are directly linked to a rise in depression rates.
Supporters for this change mention that it could prevent car crashes, be beneficial to the economy (such as in golfing, that could potentially make use of evening daylight), and even reduce the amount of robberies.
“I know this is not the most important issue confronting America, but it’s one of those issues where there’s a lot of agreement,” Rubio said.
Article by Qwyen Le of Cabin John Middle School
Photo courtesy of Unsplash