WASHINGTON, July 9 - The U.S. House of Representatives is scheduled to vote next week on legislation that would establish daylight saving time year-round, according to a notice released on Thursday.
The measure, often referred to as the Sunshine Protection Act, previously won near-unanimous support in the House Energy and Commerce Committee in May, clearing the panel by a 48-1 margin. The U.S. Senate had voted unanimously in March 2022 to move to permanent daylight saving time, but the House did not take up that version of the bill at the time amid recorded opposition.
The text of the proposal the House will consider next week includes a provision allowing individual states to opt out of year-round daylight saving time, preserving a degree of state-level choice over clock settings.
Daylight saving time - advancing clocks by one hour during the spring and summer months - has been observed across nearly the entire United States since the 1960s. Proponents of making the practice permanent point to a range of claimed effects, arguing the twice-yearly clock changes cause sleep disruptions and contribute to higher rates of workplace injuries and traffic crashes. Supporters also contend that extended evening daylight in winter months could stimulate additional economic activity.
President Donald Trump has publicly supported an end to the biannual clock changes. In May he said it was "time that people can stop worrying about the 'Clock,' not to mention all of the work and money that is spent on this ridiculous, twice yearly production."
If the House approves the bill, it would return to the Senate for consideration. The measure faces continued opposition from some lawmakers, including Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas, who has warned that year-round daylight saving time would push winter sunrises to very late hours and could require children in many parts of the country to travel to school in darkness.
Representative Vern Buchanan, a Republican from Florida who has introduced the legislative effort repeatedly since 2018, refiled the bill this year. The proposal has particular resonance in his home state, where supporters highlight benefits such as additional evening hours for recreational activities on golf courses and sports fields.
Representative Frank Pallone, a Democrat from New Jersey, has voiced support as well, saying permanent daylight saving time is "better for safety and will boost New Jersey’s tourism industry. Let’s stop changing the clocks twice a year."
The United States has experimented with year-round daylight saving time in the past. It was used during World War Two and briefly enacted again in 1974 with an energy-saving rationale, but the 1974 initiative proved unpopular and Congress repealed it later that year.
As the House prepares to vote, the debate remains framed by competing concerns over safety, daily schedules for families and schools, recreational and tourism benefits, and regional differences in sunrise and sunset timing.