Congress members in Boston have renewed the push to make Daylight Saving Time year-round. If approved, the nation would not need to change its clocks again twice a year.
Boston and other places that follow the biannual tradition turned back the clocks one hour last Sunday. According to U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a Rhode Island Democrat, the bipartisan Sunshine Protection Act would end an antiquated and disruptive practice.
Whitehouse is one of the co-sponsors of the legislation. Like him, Florida Republican Marco Rubio and Massachusetts Democrat Ed Markey also co-sponsored the bill.
Whitehouse explained that each November, the practice of ‘falling back’ an hour disrupts people’s lives and robs them of daylight hours to enjoy themselves. “It’s time for Congress to take up this bipartisan legislation to make Daylight Saving Time permanent and give Rhode Islanders an hour of afternoon sunshine back during the dark winter months,” he added.
Whitehouse believes that permanent Daylight Saving Time in time zones that observe it can provide economic and public health benefits. For instance, it can boost more significant economic activity, more energy savings, lower rates of seasonal depression, and fewer car accidents and robberies due to more daylight in the late afternoon.