Published March 25. 2021 02:45PM
A local legislator is pushing a bill which would make daylight saving time year-round in Pennsylvania.
Ryan MacKenzie, R-Lehigh and Berks, ticked off several perceived benefits as he shepherded the bill through the House State Government Committee last week.
The committee approved the bill 23-2, but passage still has a long road to travel. It must win support from the full House and Senate and then get the signature of Gov. Tom Wolf, who has not signaled how he might react if the bill reaches his desk.
The bigger issue is whether the rest of the country will go along with such a move. In that regard, there seems to be renewed interest in this issue which seems to keep recurring every few years.
At the national level, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Florida, has been the key proponent, and he and a bipartisan group of colleagues have once again introduced legislation as the new Congress convened at the beginning of the year.
Rubio was joined by four Republicans and three Democrats in this latest effort to make DST permanent across the United States.
Florida’s Legislature enacted DST in 2018, but its implementation is contingent on the adoption of a national law. The same is true in 15 other states which have taken similar action. They are: Arkansas, Alabama, California, Delaware, Georgia, Idaho, Louisiana, Maine, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. Bills in other states, including Pennsylvania, are going through the legislative process.
This year DST began on March 14 and will end on Sunday, Nov. 7.
Mackenzie cited “various studies,” which he said indicate that there would be energy savings, although this theory has been challenged by some analysts. He also said there would be less crime because of more daylight later in the day. There even would be healthier individuals because of fewer strokes, fewer traffic accidents and more time to enjoy outdoor activities and a healthier lifestyle, Mackenzie said.
Rubio said momentum is growing to “end the antiquated practice of clock-changing.” He also pointed to benefits to making the move. The sponsoring senators believe that it is time to “lock the clock” and rid the country of these biennial disruptions.
The sponsors are seizing on public support after a yearlong disruption because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Even the name of the bill - the Sunshine Protection Act - fosters the optimism of what this move might mean.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has been an ardent supporter of year-round DST because the extra hour of daylight would help businesses that promote leisure outdoor activities. Golf, for example, would be a major beneficiary.
Many parents have objected in the past when year-round was tried experimentally, because it meant their children would be forced to wait at their school bus stop more hours in total darkness during the winter months.
Proponents believe the current century-old arrangement has outlived its usefulness. During World War I, Germany began using DST to conserve fuel. The rest of Europe followed. Congress enacted the Standard Time Act of 1918 which set DST from March 31 until Oct. 27. The concept never took hold because of its unpopularity.
From 1945 until 1966, there was no federal law, so individual communities chose when to begin and end DST. This, along with the already baffling time zones, led to utter confusion in some parts of the country.
After the short-lived year-round DST experiment showed few benefits, Congress enacted the Uniform Time Act in 1986, which set up DST from the first Sunday in April until the last Sunday in October. This setup lasted until 2009 when the Energy Policy Act took full effect, and this is the program under which we operate today.
How do you feel about year-round DST? Send me an email telling me why you are for or against it, and I will share your comments with other readers in a later column.
By Bruce Frassinelli | tneditor@tnonline.com
The foregoing opinions do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Board or Times News LLC.
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