Senate Passes Permanent Daylight Saving Time Bill

The United States Senate voted unanimously to make daylight saving time permanent across the United States.

The Sunshine Protection Act, introduced in 2021 by Marco Rubio (R-FL) and co-sponsored by Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), still needs to win approval in the House of Representatives. If enacted, it would apply to states that observe daylight saving time eight months in a year. It would negate the need for changing clocks twice a year.

Said Rubio in 2021: "The call to end the antiquated practice of clock changing is gaining momentum throughout the nation. Studies have shown many benefits of a year-round daylight saving time, which is why the Florida legislature voted to make it permanent in 2018."

Wyden, in that joint statement with Rubio, added: "The Sunshine Protection Act takes a common-sense step to provide some much needed stability for families in Oregon and across the nation."

More than a dozen states already have passed laws for year-round daylight saving time that would go into effect if the federal law changes. Opponents of permanent daylight saving time argue that waking up earlier in the winter would mean students going to bus stops in the dark, increasing the risk of accidents.