The Sunshine Protection Act was reintroduced by Sen. Marco Rubio and supported by others, passing the Senate on March 15, 2022. The Sunshine Protection Act would make daylight saving time permanent and allow states that don’t observe it, like Arizona, to choose their standard time. This would start on Nov. 5 of this year, but the bill is currently stuck in the House.
Rubio stated, “This ritual of changing time twice a year is stupid. Locking the clock has overwhelming bipartisan and popular support. This Congress, I hope that we can finally get this done.”
Sen. Edward J. Markey said, “Over the years, I’ve fought and won to extend daylight saving time—adding two months’ worth of sun to the American people’s calendar.”
He added, “It’s past time for Congress to broaden its horizons and finally make daylight saving time permanent. With the Sunshine Protection Act, we can shine a light on the darkest days of the year and deliver more sun, more smiles, and brighter skies.”
Sen. Rand Paul said, “The Sunshine Protection Act will allow states the freedom to decide if they want to permanently follow daylight saving time or not without needing approval from Congress. I’m glad to join Sen. Rubio in introducing this commonsense legislation.”
According to a study by JP Morgan Chase, a potential effect of the act being passed will be a better economy. According to the study, there is a drop in the economy of 2.2-4.9% whenever the time is set back.
The American Journal of Public Health and the Journal of Safety Research showed that car accidents with pedestrians will also drop because the hours of daylight and work hours will align better.
Sen. Rick Scott said, “Permanent daylight saving means more time in the sunshine and that’s something everybody should support. Changing the clock twice a year is outdated and unnecessary. I’m proud to be leading this bipartisan legislation with Senator Rubio that makes a much-needed change and benefits so many in Florida and across the nation.”
Scott continued, “When I was governor of Florida, I was proud to sign this bill into law on the state level, and I will continue this effort in Congress. We need to get it all the way over the finish line this time. It’s time for Congress to act and pass this good bill today.”
Studies have shown that daylight saving has a negative impact on students and their health. The New University of Florida released an article on Nov. 21, 2022 on the matter.
The article states, “When a person’s circadian rhythm is out of sync with the sunlight, such that they receive less sunlight in the morning and more in the evening, their body will respond by becoming more tired in the morning and awake at night. This bodily feedback is particularly concerning for students, who have strict schedules to maintain; DST can lead to early morning exhaustion and even missing classes and exams. If waking up later in the day and feeling fatigued is not an issue enough, DST also has proven to impact our health negatively.”
Students not getting the sleep that they are used to can affect their performance in classes and even set them back on schoolwork. Some may feel that they are already struggling, so this only sets them back more.
Joseph Gallien, a freshman nursing major said, “I already don’t get enough sleep, I can barely get in four hours of sleep. I’m exhausted and feel like I’m behind in all my classes, everytime I think I am ahead there is another missing assignment that pops up.”
Ray Jone, a freshman secondary education major, said, “Daylight savings has always been a little confusing to me, but I do know that when we leap forward I lose an hour of sleep. Already not sleeping enough, waking up feeling like it is seven when in reality it is eight can be a bit annoying. Plus who really changes every single clock they have?”
Some students don’t need to get up early to go to classes, and are not as impacted by the time change..
Izanary Lara, a freshman chemistry major said, “It doesn’t really affect me all too much. I don’t really have any morning classes so waking up won’t be too hard.”