Ever wonder why we have this antiquated system of changing the clocks twice a year. Daylights Saving Time was originally instituted during WWI by Germany to conserve fuel and was adopted in the U.S. two years later in 1918. While changing time may have been useful then, the benefits are meager now and numerous studies have shown many negative consequences of it including increased car accidents, increased suicide rates and decreased worker productivity.
So the question remains, why do we continue following this disastrous tradition; why doesn't Congress do something about it? Well many representatives have. The Sunshine Protection Act (SPA) is a bill that if passed would make Daylight Saving Time permanent in the U.S. The SPA has been introduced to both the House and Senate with bipartisan support in each new session of Congress since 2018. However, the SPA has died in each houses commerce committee each time. So why do the commerce committees not support this bill? If I were to speculate I would say it's because the representatives on the commerce committees are preference outliers and come from states with large industries that benefit from the current system. These representatives want to maximize their votes by not upsetting these industries and constituents of their states so they let the SPA die in committee every time they can. Therefore unless there are significant changes in the composition of each houses commerce committee, I think it's safe to say the current system is here to stay.
1 comment:
Ryan, I’m sick of changing my clock as well, but I don’t think we are doomed. The Uniform Time Act, passed in 1966, mandates that each state either change the clocks to daylight saving time at a specified time and date, or stick will standard time all year. While standard time isn’t realistic for most states, it is observed in Arizona, Hawaii, Guam, American Samoa, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The Sunshine Protection Act hasn’t gone far in congress, but 19 states have passed legislation or resolutions in support of year-round daylight saving time in the last 4 years. This includes the act passed in Alabama in May 2021, which would have the state permanently observe daylight saving time. The bill was put into effect in August, and Alabama is “waiting for any potential repeal of the federal mandate.” https://www.9news.com/article/news/nation-world/daylight-saving-time-bill-status-all-50-states/507-25ff8777-63bc-423f-895d-22f5a3d5d28c
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