FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WOWO) — Americans could eventually stop changing their clocks twice a year, but making daylight saving time permanent would come with a major tradeoff.
Winter evenings would stay lighter, while winter mornings would remain darker.
The House has passed the Sunshine Protection Act, legislation that would make daylight saving time permanent across most of the country. The measure still needs approval from the Senate before it could become law.
Under the proposal, most Americans would no longer turn their clocks back one hour in November. Instead, clocks would remain on daylight saving time throughout the year.
For now, the current system remains in place. Unless Congress changes the law, most Americans will turn their clocks back one hour on November 1, 2026 according to WCMH.
The proposed change would not create additional daylight. It would shift an hour of existing daylight from the morning to the evening on the clock.
That means a winter sunset that currently occurs at 4:30 p.m. would occur at approximately 5:30 p.m. under permanent daylight saving time.
The tradeoff would be a sunrise approximately one hour later.
The difference would be especially noticeable in northern states, where winter days are already short.
Some communities currently see winter sunsets during the 4 p.m. hour. Under permanent daylight saving time, those sunsets would move into the 5 p.m. hour.
That could mean more daylight for afternoon commutes, after-school activities, outdoor recreation and people getting home from work.
But it would also mean darker mornings.
In parts of the northern United States, winter sunrises could occur after 8 a.m. Under permanent daylight saving time, some northern communities could see the sun rise after 9 a.m. during portions of the winter.
The question of which part of the day should have that additional hour is at the center of the debate over permanent daylight saving time.
Supporters have pointed to later sunsets and the elimination of the twice-yearly clock change.
The American Academy of Sleep Medicine supports ending seasonal clock changes but recommends permanent standard time rather than permanent daylight saving time. The organization says standard time more closely aligns with the body’s natural sleep-wake cycle.
The United States has experimented with year-round daylight saving time before.
During the 1970s, the country temporarily adopted permanent daylight saving time during an energy crisis. The experiment proved unpopular, with concerns about dark winter mornings among the issues surrounding the decision to return to seasonal clock changes.
Indiana currently observes daylight saving time, meaning most Hoosiers would experience the same basic shift if the federal proposal becomes law.
In Fort Wayne, permanent daylight saving time would mean winter sunsets occurring roughly an hour later by the clock. Winter sunrises would also occur roughly an hour later.
The amount of daylight would not change. The difference would be when that daylight appears on the clock.
Hawaii and most of Arizona already remain on standard time throughout the year and would not experience the same change.
For now, there is no change to Indiana’s clock schedule.
Unless Congress passes the Sunshine Protection Act and the measure becomes law, most Americans will fall back on November 1, gaining an hour of morning daylight while losing an hour of evening daylight.
The Senate’s action could ultimately determine whether that November clock change remains part of the American calendar.
