Is This Real Life?

We Just Got One Step Closer To Permanent Daylight Saving Time

Hello, sun! Hello, happiness!

The sun rises above 42nd Street during a reverse 'Manhattanhenge' in New York, New York. The Senate ...
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It might sound too good to be true, but on March 15, the Senate passed a bill that would make Daylight Saving Time permanent, Reuters reported.

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The bill, called the Sunshine Protection Act, passed unanimously. (Nope, this is not a Veep storyline.) If the House of Representatives also approves it, and President Biden signs it, it would go into effect in November 2023.

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"I know this is not the most important issue confronting America but it is one of those issues that there is a lot of agreement,” said Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, a sponsor of the bill. “If we can get this passed, we don't have to do this stupidity anymore.”

Daylight Saving Time means we get more sunlight later in the day, at the cost of losing an hour of sleep when the clocks switch. If the bill becomes law, the United States would enjoy that extra hour of sunlight during the winter without sacrificing any shut-eye.

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“Americans want more sunshine and less depression.”

Washington Sen. Patty Murray

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"When we spring forward, not only are we losing an hour of sleep, but our brains’ melatonin production is also out of sync with the sunset and sunrise," sleep psychologist Janet Kennedy, Ph.D., founder of NYC Sleep Doctor, previously told Bustle.

What’s more, that lost hour of sleep is associated with a 6% jump in car accidents the day after the switch to DST, a 2020 study found. States that have already gotten rid of Daylight Saving Time include Arizona and Hawaii, as well as U.S. territories like Puerto Rico.

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The bill’s passage comes just two days after the switch to Daylight Saving Time, when plenty of people were still feeling its effects. Said Rubio, "Pardon the pun, but this is an idea whose time has come.”

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