The U.S. Senate on Tuesday passed a bill that would make Daylight Saving Time permanent across the United States starting in 2023.
Called the Sunshine Protection Act, the legislation was passed unanimously by voice vote. However, the bill must both clear the House of Representatives and be signed by President Joe Biden before it becomes law.
Most of the U.S. moved ahead one hour on Sunday to resume daylight saving time. Standard time will resume in November.
According to Reuters, about 30 states have introduced legislation since 2015 to end the twice-yearly changing of clocks, with some states proposing to do it only if neighboring states do the same.
According to The New York Times, “it would take an act of Congress to do away with the federally mandated period for daylight saving time, which was created in 1918 by the Standard Time Act, the law that established federal oversight of time zones, and has been adjusted numerous times over the past 100 years.”
According to an Associated Press poll, most Americans want to stop switching between daylight saving and standard time, but are divided on which should be used all year.
