Daylight Saving: Time for It to End?

By Brett Snider, Esq. on March 09, 2014 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

Is it time for Daylight Saving Time to end? That's the feeling of many of DST's opponents who are pushing for state laws that seek to sunset the decades-long practice.

Here are some considerations for those wondering about the end of Daylight Saving Time:

Permanent DST? Or Ignore It?

Although the majority of states currently observe DST, some of them are now pushing back.

In Florida, two state legislators are proposing that the Sunshine State spring forward in March -- but never fall back. Representatives Mark Danish and Darren Soto want to permanently set Florida on Eastern Daylight Saving Time in order to save energy and boost the economy, reports Tampa Bay's WTSP-TV.

This is the opposite position toward daylight saving of another sun-rich state, Arizona, which has chosen for decades to ignore DST so that residents can get some respite from the blazing desert sun.

Missouri legislators are seeking to push the state permanently into DST as well -- as long as 19 other states will do the same. The Kansas City Star reports that HB340, approved by the Missouri House of Representatives in April 2013, will move Missouri permanently to Central Daylight Saving Time (CDT), as long as 20 states total agree to move their clocks forward.

Many States, Territories Ignore DST Already

As mentioned above, DST isn't a universal truth. Arizona, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, and the U.S. Virgin Islands do not observe DST -- likely because at latitudes near the equator, daylight amounts don't vary as much with the seasons.

States which straddle time zones have the option under federal law to ignore DST, although it causes a very tricky time situation in places like Indiana. In places where separate cities within the same state observe time as a local phenomenon, commercial operations based on hourly deadlines would become very confusing.

Any statewide changes to Daylight Saving Time not authorized by the Uniform Time Act may need to receive federal authorization from Congress, but no state has yet challenged this authority.

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