As part of the 2020 session, the Utah legislative body voted to abolish the biannual change of the clock and make daylight saving time permanent throughout the state.
On Feb. 26, the Utah House of Representatives passed Senate Bill 59 with a vote of 70-1 after the Senate passed it 28-1. The bill, if signed by Gov. Gary Herbert, would put the state of Utah on permanent Mountain Daylight Time, and do away with the Mountain Standard Time used during winter.
Utah’s daylight saving time bill can only go into effect if four other western states also vote to adopt permanent daylight saving time.
A change to federal law is also needed to allow the switch. Currently, only forgoing daylight time and sticking to standard time is permissible by federal law – an option that the state of Arizona is taking advantage of.
Stopping the yearly switch is an idea that is increasing in popularity across the United States. NBC News reports that, as of August 2019, 36 states had introduced bills endorsing a permanent change to daylight time.
The logic behind the yearly switch is simple: As the days get longer during the summer months, it seems beneficial to have most of that time in the evening when more people are likely to use it. Hence, moving the clock forward during the summer months so the sun will rise later and set later.
Rep. Scott Chew of Jensen, who was not present the day the House voted on the bill, doesn’t feel that being on permanent summer hours is beneficial, and says he would have added a second no to the bill.
“It will be really interesting to me – if we go to daylight saving [time] year-round – to see what people actually think after they’ve had to get up and have two-and-a-half hours of darkness in the morning before the day starts,” Chew said.
In some major U.S. cities, permanent daylight saving time would have the sun rising after 8:30 a.m. in the months of December and January, according to NBC News. In Utah, on Dec. 21 – the longest day of the year – the sun would not be fully risen until nearly 9 a.m.
Salt Lake Community College communications student Zack Western is still unconcerned, saying, “I’m all for permanent daylight saving time. I’d rather have more of the prime time of my day occur in sunlight.”
Whether this bill comes to fruition is a question for the future. Now, some are just grateful to finally have a bill on the subject passed.
“Colleagues, I plead with you to vote for this bill so that we don’t ever have to have another daylight saving time bill come up in front of this body,” Draper Rep. Jeff Stenquist said during discussion of the bill.