Wednesday’s testimony was heard by the House Energy Subcommittee on Consumer Protection. Some health experts urged Congress to adopt a new law that would keep Daylight Savings Time in force permanently.
In the United States, the biannual shifting clocks was first implemented to conserve energy and resources in the early 20th century. This required that most Americans set their clocks an hour ahead of the standard time, which is between late spring and autumn. Daylight Savings was expanded by Congress to include an additional four weeks every year in 2007.
However, Daylight Savings is not popular with most Americans. This has prompted a number of federal and state legislative proposals to modify or abolish the program.
Daylight Savings Time comes with its benefits and drawbacks. Jan Schakowsky (Democrat of Illinois) said that the growing public interest and state action on this topic brought us to this point today. She stated, “Some argue that when we spring forward and lose an hour in the morning sunlight, it impacts our health, the safety of traffic, and the safety of schoolchildren commuting to school.”
Some versions of the legislation would require Daylight Savings to be maintained year-round. Other versions would allow states to opt out of this system with more flexibility.
Steve P. Calandrillo, University of Washington Professor, testified that Americans are less likely to be injured if sunset is delayed into the evening or afternoon.
Simply put, darkness is fatal. Calandrillo stated that darkness in the evening is more fatal than in the morning. “The evening rush hour is twice the deadly as the morning because more people are on the roads, more alcohol is in drivers’ bloodstreams, people are racing to get home and more children are playing outside, unsupervised.”
American Academy of Sleep Medicine Dr. Beth Marlow, a researcher for her organization, told the panel that 63% of Americans support eliminating seasonal time changes. A 2020 commentary in the Journal of the American Medical Association showed an increase in strokes and heart attacks in time transitions.
The issue is common criticism by voters, according to members of the House subcommittee. Rep. Gus Bilirakis (a Florida Republican) said, “This topic is something I continue to hear from my constituents.” While this transition is easy for devices, it’s not so easy for our bodies. He said that humans are more complicated than just winding a watch backward. “The toll on our bodies could be severe.”
Rep. Fred Upton (Republican from Michigan), who was previously the leader of the House Energy Committee, which approved Daylight Savings time expansion more than a decade back, stated that he supports giving states the option to opt in or not for seasonal time changes. Upton stated that the system “saves people lives” and pointed out that children living near streets and on the streets have more daylight at Halloween. Upton stated that he would prefer to adjust the clock change schedule from Sunday mornings to Saturday mornings every year.
CBS News reviewed several legislative proposals that would change or overhaul the system. Many proposals have similar language in order to make Daylight Savings a year-round system. South Carolina GOP Rep. Ralph Norman’s proposal would require that the Government Accountability Office conduct a study about the effects of Daylight Savings being extended to all of the year, if any such law is passed.
