The Jambar
When the Christmas spirit fades and the temperature drops below zero, winter is a gloomy time of year. Barren trees, muddy snow and slick roads come with early nights that make the day feel as if it’s over before it begins.
Daylight saving time causes clocks to shift an hour forward. Beginning the second Sunday in March, an extra hour of daylight can be observed until the first Sunday in November, when clocks reset to standard time.
According to the U.S. Department of Defense, daylight saving time was created during World War I when the Standard Time Act of 1918 was signed into law, but repealed less than two years later.
The law was reintroduced during World War II to help conserve fuel and create a sense of national well-being. This period was called “war time” and was repealed Sept. 30, 1945.
“For the next two decades, there were no set rules for daylight saving time, which caused a lot of confusion for the transportation and broadcast industries,” the DOD stated. “That changed for good in 1966, when Congress passed the Uniform Time Act that set a national standard time.”
Although it has been 59 years since this decision, many states recently enacted legislation to make daylight saving time permanent.
According to the National Council of State Legislatures, Florida became the first state to enact legislation regarding the issue in 2018. Although the Uniform Time Act allows states to use permanent standard time, Congress would need to alter federal law to allow permanent daylight saving time.
“20 states have enacted legislation or passed resolutions to provide for year-round daylight saving time,” NCSL stated. “Because federal law does not currently allow full-time DST, Congress would have to act before states could adopt changes.”
The American Academy of Sleep Medicine published an article in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine covering the effects of daylight saving time.
The AASM credits both a decrease in crime rates and in motor vehicle crash risks to daylight saving time. Although these results are positive, there could be negative risks including “social jet lag,” which is the disruption of a person’s internal clock and its effects on the body.
“There is evidence that the body clock does not adjust to DST even after several months. Permanent DST could therefore result in permanent phase delay,” the article stated. “Social jet lag is associated with an increased risk of obesity, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease and depression.”
The article refers to the 1973 oil embargo enacted by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, which caused year-round daylight saving time. During this period, child fatalities increased as the night sky lasted into the morning, increasing the risk of accidents while traveling to school.
“Increased fatalities among school-aged children in the morning were noted between January and April,” the article stated.
With many states pushing for permanent daylight saving time, the odds of Congress changing federal law may be increasing.