On July 14, the House of Representatives passed and sent to the Senate house bill H.R.139, known as the Sunshine Protection Act of 2025. While it is difficult to predict what the Senate action will be, it should be noted that it cleared the House overwhelmingly (308-117) and it is being pushed heavily by President Trump.
For as long as there has been recorded history, humans have been measuring time according to the motion of the earth. In the United States, prior to 1918, we had Standard Time, which entailed assigning noon to the point when the sun was directly overhead. Under this system, the length of the days varied according to the seasons, but sunrise and sunset were roughly equidistant from noon. No amount of tinkering with a clock can change that.
Changing the clock so that noon becomes 1 pm does not change what happens in nature. It does not protect sunshine; it does not save one single second of daylight. It merely attempts to shift human activity so that more of it happens during daylight hours in the summer and during nighttime in the winter.
To better understand the current infatuation with Daylight Savings Time, let us look at its history in the United States:
Standard Time Act of 1918 (GovTrack.us):
The Uniform Time Act of 1966, Pub.L. 89–387, 80 Stat. 107, enacted April 13, 1966, was a Law of the United States to “promote the adoption and observance of uniform time within the standard time zones” prescribed by the Standard Time Act of 1918. Its intended effect was to simplify the official pattern of where and when daylight saving time (DST) is applied within the U.S. Prior to this law, each state worked out its own scheme for the dates of beginning and ending DST, and in some cases, which parts of the state should use it.
This was a seven-month wartime measure, instituted to save daylight, thereby allowing reduced use of energy.
Even though there is no evidence that this adoption of DST produced any significant reduction in energy use, it was adopted again during World War Two with similar results. There was no significant energy savings.
After WWII, and until 1966, local jurisdictions had pretty much free rein concerning the use of DST.
The Uniform Time Act of 1966 (Wikipedia)
This Act, signed into law by Lindon B. Johnson, set forth the seasonal resetting of the clocks to advance one hour in the spring and move back one hour in the fall. There have been numerous changes to the actual date and time when changes occur, but other than that the provisions of this act are pretty much what we have today.
Year-round DST has been tried before – The 1973 experiment
Wartime was not the only time we tried year-round DST. In 1973, in response to the Arab Oil Embargo, President Nixon signed into law an emergency measure to establish permanent Daylight Saving Time.
The purpose was to save energy to help offset the effect of the embargo, but there is no evidence that it accomplished that.
While the public received this measure very positively at first, public opinion quickly changed once they experienced the measure’s negative side effects and doubtful delivery of the desired benefit. The measure was repealed in 1975, under President Ford.
1975 to Present
The idea of switching to a permanent DST has been considered several times, but this time it has cleared a congressional chamber with the House approval of H.R.139. It could be that the current push meets the same fate as that of the 1973 experiment. It may be enacted because it sounds good on paper, but repealed shortly thereafter because it does not work for most people.
Alternative to Permanent DST
A major argument in favor of permanent DST is that it does away with the pesky task of changing the clocks twice a year. But very little is said about the other way to stop changing clocks, namely going to permanent Standard Time.
This alternative is seldom discussed in the media, it does not have a bill in congress, and it is not supported by Trump. But there are some arguments in favor of doing away with Daylight Saving Time and establishing year-round Standard Time.
- It also ends the semi-annual ritual of changing clocks
- It is in sync with the solar clock, which is more natural
- It better conforms to the human circadian rhythm
- It has worked very well for states like Arizona and Hawaii
In the end, it may come down to economics and what industries have more influence with politicians. Generally, industries that favor permanent DST are those that engage in outdoor activities, overall consumer spending, and tourism. Industries that favor Standard time include farming, education, and healthcare.
It will be quite interesting to see what happens with H.R.139 as it moves through the Senate.
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