House to vote on measure making daylight saving time permanent

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The House will vote next week on legislation making daylight saving time permanent nationwide, reviving a years-long effort to eliminate the twice-yearly clock changes.

Daylight saving time has been observed throughout most of the U.S. since the 1960s, shifting clocks forward one hour from March to November. Most states observe daylight saving time, with the exceptions of Arizona and Hawaii.

The Sunshine Protection Act, an effort supported by President Trump, passed the House Energy and Commerce Committee 48-1 in May and allows states to opt out. Proponents of the measure argue the shift causes sleep disturbances and reduces productivity.

Trump has pushed for permanent daylight saving time, saying he would work hard to get the legislation passed into law.

“It’s time that people can stop worrying about the ‘Clock,’ not to mention all of the work and money that is spent on this ridiculous, twice yearly production,” he wrote on social media following the committee’s vote.

The Senate unanimously approved a similar measure in 2022, but it stalled in the House.

Should it pass the House, it could face opposition in the Senate from Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), who warned it would “push winter sunrises to an absurdly late hour” and that “kids would either walk to school in the pitch black or schools would have to push back start times.”

The House measure was introduced by Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.) and has long been popular in Florida, where supporters say the extended evening daylight could boost tourism and outdoor recreation.

Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. (D-N.J.), the top Democrat on the Energy and Commerce Committee, has backed the legislation and agreed that it would improve safety and help New Jersey’s tourism industry.

The U.S. has previously observed year-round daylight saving time during World War II, and it was briefly enacted by former President Nixon in response to the 1973 oil crisis.

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Frank Pallone Jr.

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