Lawmakers resurrect push for permanent daylight saving time
Image: Elise Amendola
Changing the clocks twice a year moved one step closer to becoming history on Tuesday, when the House passed 308-117 the Sunshine Protection Act of 2025 and cleared a key hurdle for legislation that would make daylight saving time (DST) permanent nationwide.
The renewed push comes after a similar bill passed the Senate in 2022 before dying in the House. This time around, the proposal has bipartisan backing along with support from President Trump.
Clocking the details
If approved, the Sunshine Protection Act would:
- End the twice-yearly tradition of "springing forward" and "falling back."
- Keep the whole country on DST for the entire year (instead of just March-November), unless a state chooses to opt out.
- Continue allowing states and US territories like Hawaii, most of Arizona, and Puerto Rico to remain on standard time year-round.
- Allow the 19 states that have already passed trigger laws to permanently observe DST.
A YouGov survey conducted earlier this year found roughly two-thirds of Americans want to end the twice-yearly clock change, though there's far less agreement on what should replace it.
Time for a change?
The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL), argues permanent DST would create longer evenings that encourage outdoor activity in the fall/winter while also reducing traffic accidents, lowering crime, and boosting local businesses. Support for the proposal has been strongest in coastal states like Florida, where later sunsets are especially popular.
On the flip side: Opponents of the bill—including Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA), who pushed to make standard time permanent instead—argue that permanent DST would create a darker, more dangerous environment for children heading to school before sunrise.
- Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR), has warned some parts of the country wouldn't see the sun rise until nearly 9 AM during the winter under the proposed bill.
- Many sleep medicine experts have also pushed back, saying permanent standard time better aligns with the body's natural circadian rhythm.
Worth mentioning: Congress has experimented with permanent DST before—and it went about as well as the Fyre Festival 2 rollout. Lawmakers adopted DST year-round during the 1974 energy crisis, but repealed the policy within just a few months, after public support fell from 79% to 42% amid concerns over children waiting for school buses before sunrise.
Looking ahead...The bill still needs approval from the Senate and President Trump's signature before becoming law, while states will also have the opportunity to exempt themselves before the act takes effect.
đź“Š Flash poll: Which of the following options regarding daylight-saving time would you most prefer?
- Keep the current system (two annual clock changes)
- Permanent DST (later sunrise/sunset year-round)
- Permanent standard time (earlier sunrise/sunset year-round)
- Unsure/other
See a 360° view of what pundits are saying →
Sprinkles from the Left
- Some commentators argue that it's time to end the twice-yearly clock changes, believing the practice disrupts people's health and daily routines more than it offers meaningful benefits in modern life.
- Others contend that keeping daylight saving time year-round would mean more daylight after work and school to help encourage healthier routines, make communities safer, and spare Americans the hassle of changing their clocks twice a year.
- “Again we shift to daylight saving time for no good reason. Stop the insanity.” –Express-News Editorial Board
- “Time to lock the clock for good with Daylight Saving Time” –US Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL)
- “Leave clocks alone. Our health depends on it” –Orlando Sentinel And South Florida Sun Sentinel Editorial Boards
Sprinkles from the Right
- Some commentators argue that switching the clocks has become an unnecessary hassle, believing it's time to give people a consistent schedule while avoiding the health risks and daily disruptions tied to changing the clocks twice a year.
- Others contend that if the US is going to stop changing the clocks twice a year, it should adopt permanent standard time instead of permanent daylight saving time, arguing that standard time better aligns with natural daylight, avoids darker winter mornings, and may reduce some of the health and safety concerns tied to disrupting the body's internal clock.
- “Stop messing with our time” –Boston Herald Editorial Board
- “Time to move on from the daylight saving time obsession” –William F. Shughart II, Washington Examiner
- “California should heed the voters and end clock changes” –Orange County Register Editorial Board
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