Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and a bipartisan group of Senate colleagues announced the reintroduction of the Sunshine Protection Act, a bill initially introduced by the Florida lawmaker in March 2018 and March 2019 that seeks to make DST "the new, permanent standard time."
"The legislation, if enacted, would apply to those states who currently participate in DST, which most states observe for eight months out of the year. Standard Time, from November to March, is only observed for four months out of the year," the release detailed.
"The bill would simply negate the need for Americans to change their clocks twice a year. Many studies have shown that making DST permanent could benefit the economy and the country."
Presently, the US and dozens of countries around the world shift their clocks forward or back an hour at two points in the year.
Sens. James Lankford (R-OK), Roy Blunt (R-MO), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Rick Scott (R-FL) and Ed Markey (D-MA) were all named as co-sponsors on the bill.
"Americans' lifestyles are very different than they were when Daylight Saving Time began more than a century ago," Whitehouse was quoted as saying in the release. "Springing forward and falling back year after year only creates unnecessary confusion while harming Americans' health and our economy."
A 2020 study conducted at the University of Colorado at Boulder analyzed 732,000 accidents over two decades and found that the switch to DST comes with a 6% increase in fatal car crashes that week.
Hyde-Smith argued "the agricultural sector in Mississippi and across the nation desires this change," particularly "after a terrible pandemic year and a very dark winter."
