The U.S. House is set to take up a bill that would make daylight saving time permanent across most of the country. The Sunshine Protection Act is scheduled to be considered in the House at some point during the week of July 13.

Background

The bill repeals a section of the Uniform Time Act of 1966 to end the yearly ‘fall back’ and ‘spring forward’ time changes. The newest version of the bill would allow states to opt out and stick to standard time. A previous incarnation of the bill in 2022 passed the U.S. Senate but ended up stalling in the House.

So far, 19 states have passed laws supporting year-round daylight saving time. At least a dozen other states, including North Carolina, have also considered legislation to do the same. However, in order for these state laws to take effect to observe year-round daylight saving time, the federal Uniform Time Act would need to be amended to allow it.

Arizona and Hawaii are the only states who’ve opted out to follow year-round standard time under the current rules. If the Sunshine Protection Act were to pass, the latest sunrise we’d see in Raleigh would be 8:33 in the morning, and the earliest sunset would just after 6 p.m. That means many school and work commutes would happen before the sun comes up during the darkest months of winter.

Sleep experts have advocated for the elimination of the biannual time change because of the health impacts and risks it can have, but they also have mixed feelings on moving to daylight saving time instead over standard time because of safety risks, particularly for school children having to navigate dark morning commutes.

Original reporting: WRAL Raleigh — read the source article.