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Game changer: you might never have to change your microwave and car clocks again! On March 15, the US Senate unanimously agreed to make Daylight Savings Time permanent. This would make winter afternoons brighter for longer – a welcome state of affairs for those who live in northern states, as well as those who suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and just want more of their day to be sunlit.
Of course, the Senate’s decision is just one step in the right direction. The US House of Representatives must first pass the bill, and President Joe Biden will need to sign it into law.
The US has struggled with this bill for many years, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. In 2018, Florida became the first state that passed legislation to permanently stay on Daylight Savings Time, while 17 other states followed its lead. Since 2015, 350 other bills and resolutions have been attempted in nearly every state.
It’s a myth that Daylight Savings Time was enacted to help farmers, says the Washington Post, as is the idea that “springing forward” helps us conserve significant amounts of energy. There’s also murky history around how and why it was originally enacted in 1918. It’s said to encourage more purchasing, linked to more candy sales at Halloween, more barbecuing in the evenings, or even more golf games at the links. Perhaps that’s why instead on staying on so-called “standard time,” this bill makes DST the new standard.
According to Senator Marco Rubio, if everything goes well on the national level, the change would not be effective until November 2023, as reported by Reuters. Still, there’s light at the end and the entrance of the tunnel.