Did you remember to change your clocks on Saturday night, when daylight saving time clicked in?

And when you did, did you wonder whether this “spring forward, fall back” business made any sense?

Then you’re not alone. According to a recent National Conference of State Legislatures report, “State legislatures have considered over 750 bills and resolutions in recent years to establish year-round daylight saving time as soon as federal law allows it.  (Currently, 48 states observe daylight saving time. The two that don’t are Hawaii and Arizona.) 

It appeared likely earlier this year that the U.S. was on track to lock the clocks, especially after the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and President Trump seemed to be leaning in that direction.

According to The Hill, “There are still bills in Congress that could put the U.S. on permanent daylight saving time, one of which has received bipartisan support. All four were referred to committees, but they don’t seem any closer to passing, especially in light of the current government shutdown.”

The “lock the clock” movement would have seemed like it should have taken place years ago. “Since 2015,” according to the NCSL,”virtually every state has considered multiple time zone bills, but none of significance passed until 2018, when Florida became the first state to enact legislation to permanently observe DST, pending amendment of federal law to permit such action.”

In just the last seven years, 19 states have enacted legislation to provide for year-round daylight saving time, awaiting Congressional approval for this change. The most recent one was Texas. Last May, a bill was introduced by Representative Will Metcalf, “the bill would eliminate the biannual clock changes for both parts of the state on Central Standard Time and on Mountain Standard Time. The law requires that this new time standard be referred to as “Texas Time.”

Doesn’t that sound just like Texas?

Though there seems to be nationwide bipartisan agreement that daylight saving time should be relegated to the past, there’s only one real debate. Should the “extra” hour of daylight be used to make the sun appear in the sky earlier in the day or later at night.

People who are in favor of more light in the evening argue that it could save energy and yield an economic benefit for open-air malls, based on more shopper traffic later in the day. In the other camp, are those who argue that more light in the morning is better for overall health -- a point of view supported by the American Medical Association.  

A recent study by Stanford Medicine showed that the worst of all options is leaving things the way they are. According to an article published by Stanford, “We found that staying in standard time or staying in daylight saving time is definitely better than switching twice a year,” said Jamie Zeitzer, professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences.

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