I’ve been writing columns about Daylight Saving Time (DST) for more years than I care to remember, but maybe – just maybe – this is my last one.
In an act of spectacular statesmanship, surprising everyone, probably including itself, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed the aptly named Sunshine Protection Act last week to end clock changes in spring and fall, and put most of the country on DST.
What actually happened is quite interesting; you can find a knowledgeable account on BuzzFeed.
Senators were apparently caught off guard when Sen. Krysten Sinema, the Arizona Democrat best known for frustrating President Biden’s legislative agenda, presided over a motion for unanimous consent.
Almost always, someone objects. Passing a bill through the Senate, even when the filibuster isn’t involved, usually takes a year and a day.
But in this case, several senators known to oppose DST were absent, and one who was present – Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) didn’t object, saying he was more focused on the war in Ukraine.
So, for the first time, the Senate has gone on record in favor of common sense. Of course, the House of Representatives must also approve and, while far speedier than the Senate, the very shock of the Senate’s action produced a reaction.
“Senate plan for permanent daylight saving faces doubts in the House,” headlined the Washington Post. “Daylight saving change faces trouble in House,” added The Hill.
Of course. There seems virtually unanimous agreement among Americans that we’re tired of “springing forward” and “falling back.” It takes a twice-annual toll that’s completely unnecessary.
But, this being Divided America, and there are two choices, permanent Daylight Time, or permanent Standard Time, there’s going to be disagreement, and the inevitable retreat of doing nothing; the House wants to study the bill.
In Maine, Sen. Richard Bennett (R-Oxford) got a bill through that would accomplish the same end – putting Maine on Atlantic Time, the time zone of eastern Canada.
In truth, there have been plenty of studies before, and any new ones will come to the same conclusions: that the effects on traffic accidents, energy use, outdoor activity, you name it, are fairly marginal and can be construed either way.
Maine, in fact, is uniquely disadvantaged by Standard Time because, by rights, half the state should be on Atlantic Time already. The time zone boundary bends around the “sun time” meridian so the state can be in one time zone, observing the same time as Boston and New York.
But wherever you live, Daylight Time has significant advantages over Standard Time.
We already use DST eight months of the year, going back to Standard Time only during the winter, when there’s not much daylight in the Northern Hemisphere.
The last Mainer – one with clout – who took on the problem was George Mitchell, who as U.S. Senate majority leader put together a coalition for year-round Daylight Time. Opponents blocked it, and in the end the best parliamentarian we’ve had in decades could get only three more weeks of DST, the present schedule.
The one time we did try year-round DST, in 1974, was short-lived. The problem, it seems, it that there were several school bus stop accidents in Florida during the darker winter pickups, and Congress quickly repealed the law.
Only later did we discover that Florida had experienced equal numbers of bus accidents in the afternoon the previous year, perhaps due to early sunsets. It was really just newness of the winter time that upset everyone, apparently.
Yes, some areas other the country will benefit from, and like, year-round DST more than others. But if we’re going to stop the twice-annual changes, we have to move one way or the other.
Consider: When would that precious hour of winter sunlight be most useful? At the beginning of the day, when a lot of people aren’t awake, or fully awake, or at the end, when it’s getting dark across Maine, on cloudy afternoons, around 3 p.m.?
About the only substantive objection comes from “sleep experts” who say that Standard Time is closer to our natural circadian rhythms. But the argument is hardly compelling: Humans left those rhythms behind when the electric light was invented, and virtually no one goes to bed because it’s getting dark, although in high summer it’s possible.
We sometimes indulge the conceit that we’d like to make everybody happy when we change the law, or reform an existing practice. That’s impossible.
The House should get on with it, and add its endorsement to the Sunshine Protection Act. And when President Biden signs the bill, we’ll never have to change the clocks again.
Douglas Rooks, a Maine editor, commentator and reporter since 1984, is the author of three books. His first, “Statesman: George Mitchell and the Art of the Possible,” is now out in paperback. He welcomes comment at drooks@tds.net
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