“Spring forward.” “Fall back.”
Those familiar phrases that remind us to move our clocks twice a year may soon fall out of favor.
On Tuesday, the U.S. Senate unanimously agreed to make daylight savings time (DST) permanent. They are calling the measure the Sunshine Protection Act. The bill still needs to pass the House of Representatives and be approved by the President. One of its sponsors, Florida Senator Marco Rubio, cited several reasons to abandon the old system. He mentioned an increased level of heart attacks, car and pedestrian accidents when the clocks were seasonally adjusted. Downsides include dark mornings for part of the year.
Founding father Ben Franklin first suggested the system to save candle wax. But it wasn’t made official until 1918.
Maryland was ahead of its time on the idea. Three weeks ago, Maryland State Senator Brian Crosby proposed the state eliminate the time changes. But to go into effect it would have required approval from the legislators in surrounding states. Now it seems his is an idea whose time has come.
