State could permanently spring forward

As the dreaded loss of an hour approaches Sunday, March 8, when daylight saving time begins, this could be the last time Delawareans lose that hour.

In 2019, Delaware adopted legislations that would put the state into permanent daylight saving time and end seasonal time changes. But before that happens a few things would have to change.

First, Delaware's neighbors – Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Maryland – would have to pass their own legislation. An amendment to Delaware's law added New York to the list. Next, the federal Department of Transportation would have to agree to create an Atlantic time standard for those states to stay permanently in daylight saving time.

Now it is a waiting game to see if other Mid-Atlantic states will pass laws keeping their states in perpetual daylight saving time.

So far, none have.

Maryland may be the closest, with a Senate bill ready for committee action March 5.

“The Maryland bill is great. It has bipartisan sponsors, and I think it has a good shot,” said Scott Yates, an expert on daylight saving time and leader of the #LockTheClock movement. Yates, a Colorado resident, said he was planning to testify in favor of the bill before a cold and cough waylaid those plans.

New Jersey and New York placed bills in committee in January 2020. New Jersey's Senate bill is in the Senate state government, wagering, tourism & historic preservation committee. New York has four bills – two senate and two assembly bills – that include placing New York in permanent daylight saving time and also studying the effects of doing so.

Since 2019, Pennsylvania has had four measures in committee, including a House bill and a Senate bill that both would create a uniform standard of time throughout the commonwealth, if authorized by Congress. There is also a resolution in committee asking Congress to make a decision on extending daylight saving time throughout the year and across the country.

If the four states pass legislation this year, they could then petition the federal Department of Transportation to create the Atlantic standard time zone. However, since that has never been done, it is uncertain whether the DOT would approve it, Yates said.

“It may make sense on paper,” Yates said, “But it's never been tested.”

Six years ago, Yates said, he expanded his casual interest in seasonal time change and the negative effects it has on human health. “I wanted to do something more than make a petition that dies away,” he said.

He started a blog to jot down his thoughts and record his research, and now his website includes an interactive list of states that have passed legislation, those working on it, and states doing nothing. Yates also travels across the country lobbying states and the federal government to change the law on time change.

He said state legislation is important because it gives a signal to Congress that people want change, but the best chance of ending seasonal time changes lies with Congress. “The federal government needs to act,” he said.

The Uniform Time Act passed by Congress in 1966 set uniform time changes, and allowed individual states to opt out of time changes. Arizona and Hawaii are the only ones that have done away with seasonal time changes, but they are in permanent standard time, not daylight saving time. Delaware passed its law with the caveat that neighboring states agree to the time change, so that there is regional time continuity.

Two bills have been introduced in Congress, and of them, Yates said, he believes the Sunshine Protection Act has potential to pass. Sponsored by Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, Yates said, the bill has strong bipartisan support that includes California Democrat Sen. Dianne Feinstein.

“That's why I'm optimistic about this. It's one of those rare, bipartisan issues,” he said. “There are so few these days, and it feels like in this fraught time, if we can actually come together and get something done that people want, I think that's a good sign for democracy.”

The bill is waiting for a hearing in the commerce committee. Yates said he is planning a trip to Washington, D.C., to lobby for the bill.

“I don't want to say the state acts are meaningless because they're not. They just don't have a lot of practical immediate effect,” he said. “But on the other hand, Congress pays attention to what state legislators do, and if they see this big trend moving across the country, it's an important signal.”

Yates' website can be found at www.sco.tt/time.