Latest news with #HouseBill1393
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Is Texas staying on daylight saving time? There's only one way for law to take effect
There has been debate for years among Texans and state legislators about whether the Lone Star State should adopt daylight saving time permanently. House Bill 1393, also known as "Texas Time," could bring an end to that discussion. Will Texans have more sunlight year-round? Here's what to know about the bill. The idea dates back to World War I, although some credit Benjamin Franklin for daylight saving time due to a satirical letter he wrote in 1784 stating: "Every morning, as soon as the sun rises, let all the bells in every church be set ringing: and if that is not sufficient, let cannon be fired in every street to wake the sluggards effectually." To maximize resources for the war, Germany and Austria implemented the first daylight saving time in 1916. The U.S. did the same in 1918. It's an outdated idea, some argue. House Bill 1393, referred to as the 'Texas Time" bill, aims to eliminate biannual clock changes and keep Texas on daylight saving time year-round. The bill has successfully passed through the Texas legislature and is now awaiting Governor Greg Abbott's signature. The bill, however, can't take effect unless Congress changes federal law to allow states to adopt daylight saving time permanently. Supporters argue that maintaining a consistent time year-round would reduce confusion, improve safety, and enhance productivity. Opponents of permanent daylight saving time cite health and safety concerns, often arguing that maintaining standard time year-round would be the better choice. Under the federal Uniform Time Act of 1966, states may not currently adopt permanent daylight saving time, but they can opt out of time changes by sticking with standard time year-round. That's how states like Arizona and Hawaii can keep from changing their clocks twice a year. Texas joins 18 other states that have passed similar permanent daylight saving time measures, and there's interest at the federal level in allowing the change. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Is Texas staying on daylight saving time permanently? It's complicated
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
It's About Time: State Law On Ending Biannual Clock Change
Texas is poised to adopt permanent daylight saving time, dubbed 'Texas Time,' after the state Senate passed House Bill 1393 last week with a 27-4 vote. The measure will now be sent to Gov. Greg Abbott for his expected signature. However, the change hinges on federal approval, as current law prohibits states from staying on daylight saving time year-round. HB 1393, introduced by Rep. Will Metcalf (R-Conroe), aims to end the twice-yearly clock changes that many Texans find disruptive. The bill, which cleared the Texas House in April, would permanently keep the state on daylight saving time (DST), extending evening daylight hours. 'The bill would provide numerous benefits to Texans,' said Sen. Paul Bettencourt (R-Houston), who sponsored the measure in the Senate. 'It's very difficult to use that hour before an 8 a.m. start for school or work very effectively, but you can use the several hours later, up through dusk.' Under the federal Uniform Time Act of 1966, states can opt for permanent standard time, as Arizona and Hawaii do, but not permanent daylight saving time without Congressional action. 'Right now, the federal government does not allow the states to make this change, so this is effectively a trigger bill,' Bettencourt said. Texas joins 18 other states, including Florida and Oklahoma, that have passed similar measures awaiting federal permission. The Sunshine Protection Act, which would allow states to adopt permanent daylight saving time, has been introduced in Congress five times, most recently in 2025, but has not passed. Critics, like Sen. Nathan Johnson (D-Dallas), argue that permanent daylight saving time poses health and safety risks. 'Everybody hates the time change,' Johnson said. 'But this has been studied medically, and there is a ton of health risks.' He cited disruptions to circadian rhythms and potential increases in pre-dawn traffic accidents, referencing the U.S.'s failed 1974 experiment with year-round daylight saving time, which was repealed after public backlash. 'The question is: Do we go with daylight saving time and always be an hour ahead of where we established our clock centuries ago? Or do we go back to what we've done for centuries?' Johnson said. Sen. Judith Zaffirini (D-Laredo) proposed permanent standard time and, alongside Bettencourt, suggested a referendum to let Texans choose. Still, neither idea gained traction among the 13 time-related bills filed this session. A 2019 AP-NORC poll found that 40% of Americans favor permanent standard time, 31% prefer permanent daylight saving time, and 28% want to keep the current system. Public comments on HB 1393 at a hearing in the House largely favored ending the biannual clock change, but most commenters favored a return to permanent standard time rather than permanent daylight saving time. Frisco resident Shannon Stewart said, 'Daylight Saving Time is dangerous for children, and HORRIBLE for our health. It disrupts our bodies' circadian rhythm. Additionally, DST has been mandated by an overreaching government before (1972) and was so hated that it was repealed. We need PERMANENT Standard Time.' 'Dictating artificial daylight savings is not the job of government,' Stewart continued. 'Noon should be when the sun is at its highest point in the sky, not at a time appointed by government.' Dr. Audrey Nath, a neurologist in Houston, urged legislators to oppose HB 1393 and instead support HB 1733, HB 1736, or SB 692, which all propose permanent standard time. 'President Nixon had put Permanent DST into effect in 1974, and it was retracted within a year. We do not need to run this experiment again in Texas,' Nath said. 'There are more heart attacks with DST. With permanent Standard Time, there is improved visibility for driving during the morning commute, and better sleep and circadian rhythms. Permanent Standard Time would have a tangible positive effect on the health of Texans.' Globally, only about a third of countries observe daylight saving time, primarily in Europe and North America, according to the Pew Research Center. In the past decade, nations like Azerbaijan, Iran, and Mexico have abolished the practice, often citing health concerns. Egypt, which ended it in 2014, reinstated it in 2023 for energy savings. Then-president-elect Donald Trump and allies like Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy have previously called for ending clock changes. In December, Trump labeled the practice 'inconvenient' and 'very costly' on social media. If signed by Abbott and approved by Congress, HB 1393 would align Texas with a growing movement to stabilize timekeeping, though its implementation remains uncertain pending federal action.
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
‘Texas Time' is here: Lone Star State moves to observe daylight saving time year-round
Texas lawmakers have disagreed for years over whether and how to abolish the unpopular semiannual clock change in the state, but a bill that is on its way to the governor will finally bring an end to that debate — if Congress also acts. House Bill 1393 by Conroe Republican Rep. Will Metcalf would establish 'Texas Time,' or permanent daylight saving time in the state, if federal lawmakers later allow states to do so. 'Right now, the federal government does not allow the states to make this change, so this is effectively a trigger bill,' said Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, who sponsored the bill in the upper chamber. Under the federal Uniform Time Act of 1966, states may not currently adopt permanent daylight saving time, but they can opt out of time changes by sticking with standard time year-round. That's how states like Arizona and Hawaii can keep from changing their clocks twice a year. Texas joins 18 other states that have passed similar permanent daylight saving time measures, and there's interest at the federal level in allowing the change. But lawmakers have remained divided up to this point on whether to keep changing the clocks or adopt permanent standard or daylight time. At least 13 bills were filed on the topic this session. Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo, filed a proposal to make standard time the standard. Zaffirini and Bettencourt also each called for a statewide referendum to allow Texans to choose their preferred time system. Neither of those proposals gained any traction in the Legislature. Critics of permanent daylight saving time have health and safety concerns for their opposition to the idea, often touting permanent standard time as the better option. 'Everybody hates the time change,' said Sen. Nathan Johnson, a Dallas Democrat. 'But this has been studied medically, and there is a ton of health risks' to permanent daylight saving time. 'Daylight saving time itself disrupts the body's natural circadian rhythms and affects sleep,' he said, arguing that traffic accidents could also increase as Texans commute to work and school in the pre-dawn hours. The Senate passed HB 1393 with a 27-4 vote Thursday. The House overwhelmingly approved the measure in April, and the proposal was sent to Gov. Greg Abbott's desk for a signature Monday. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas Legislature moves to observe daylight saving time year-round
Newsweek
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
'Texas Time' Moves a Step Closer
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. On Thursday the Texas Legislature approved House Bill 1393, which would make daylight saving time permanent across the state abolishing the current requirement for biannual clock changes. The bill will now go before Governor Greg Abbott who can sign it into state law, though even if this happens the change wouldn't actually take effect without changes to superseding federal legislation. Newsweek contacted Governor Abbott for comment via email on Friday outside of regular office hours. Why It Matters The current twice-yearly clock changes across the U.S. are controversial and in April President Trump gave his support to a bill that would have introduced year-round daylight-saving time. The U.S. did introduce year-round daylight saving in the early 1970s following an energy crisis but this was swiftly abandoned amid public anger at going to work, and sending children to school, in the dark. What To Know Texas House Bill 1393 was passed by the Texas Senate on Thursday with 27 votes in favor and four against according to Dallas News reporter Phil Jankowski. The bill would introduce a new statewide "Texas time," making daylight saving permanent across Texas, but only "if the United States Congress enacts legislation that becomes law that authorizes the State of Texas to observe daylight saving time year-round." This would apply across the state, both to the vast majority of Texas which currently falls under the Central Time Zone and the far western section which is part of the Mountain Time Zone. Texas Senator Ted Cruz called for biannual time changes to be ended in April during a committee appearance. A stock photo shows the Texas state flag at River Oaks Country Club in Houston on April 5, 2024. A stock photo shows the Texas state flag at River Oaks Country Club in Houston on April 5, 2024. Aaron M. Sprecher/GETTY Currently 20 states have passed laws that would abolish clock changes if they are given permission to do so by the federal government. Clock changes became a standard feature across the U.S. with the passage of the Uniform Time Act in 1966, though Hawaii and most of Arizona are exempt from observing daylight saving time. In 2022 the Senate passed the Sunshine Protection Act, which would have made daylight saving time permanent, but this stalled in the House. In a post on his Truth Social website in December 2024 then-president elect Trump said: "The Republican Party will use its best efforts to eliminate Daylight Saving Time, which has a small but strong constituency, but shouldn't! Daylight Saving Time is inconvenient, and very costly to our Nation." What Time Zones Does Texas Have? Most of Texas, including the major cities of Houston, Dallas, Austin and San Antonio, are currently part of the Central Time Zone. However the western counties of El Paso and Hudspeth form part of the Mountain Time Zone. What People Are Saying Texas House Bill 1393 says: "This state, acting as authorized under federal law, shall observe daylight saving time year-round. This subsection applies to both the portion of this state using central standard time as the official standard time and the portion of this state using mountain standard time as the official standard time." Senator Paul Bettencourt, a Republican who sponsored the bill, said according to The Texas Tribune: "This is effectively a trigger bill waiting for change with the federal government." What Happens Next It remains to be seen whether Governor Abbott will sign House Bill 1393 into Texas law. Even if he does, its provisions won't take effect without changes to federal legislation.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
It's 'Texas Time': Legislature OKs permanent daylight saving time, but Congress must also act
Texas lawmakers want to stop changing the clocks. Texas senators approved House Bill 1393 on Thursday, which adopts permanent daylight saving time, doing away with the current practice of changing the clocks by an hour every spring and autumn. Introduced by state Rep. Will Metcalf, a Republican from Conroe who introduced a similar bill during the last legislative session, the bill would eliminate the biannual clock changes for both parts of the state on Central Standard Time and on Mountain Standard Time. The law requires that this new time standard be referred to as "Texas Time." The bill now heads to Gov. Greg Abbott to be signed into law. However, the bill cannot yet take effect because of a superseding federal law, the Uniform Time Act, that states that daylight saving time must begin and end on federally mandated dates. "This is effectively a trigger bill waiting for change with the federal government," state Sen. Paul Bettencourt, a Houston Republican who sponsored the bill, said before a Senate debate. With the bill's passage, Texas joins 18 other states that have adopted similar laws and there is interest to make the change at the federal level. Last month, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz advocated for eliminating the time changes during a Senate committee hearing on commerce, science, and transportation. U.S. Sens. Patty Murray, a Washington Democrat, and Rick Scott, a Florida Republican, also introduced a bill adopting permanent daylight saving time, the Sunshine Protection Act, earlier this year. This would not be the first time the U.S. adopted permanent daylight saving time. The country experimented with the lack of time changes in the 1970s during the Nixon administration as a way to conserve energy. But the experiment, which was meant to last two years, ended early as public opinion soured on permanent daylight saving time over concerns that children heading to school in the darkness were more susceptible to traffic accidents. While polling shows most Americans support eliminating the time changes, state Sen. Nathan Johnson, a Dallas Democrat, urged lawmakers to rethink their support for the bill, pointing to studies that show that standard time is healthier as it aligns with the body's natural circadian rhythms, which regulate sleep-wake cycles. Reporting in the Rio Grande Valley is supported in part by the Methodist Healthcare Ministries of South Texas, Inc. First round of TribFest speakers announced! Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Maureen Dowd; U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-San Antonio; Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker; U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff, D-California; and U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas are taking the stage Nov. 13–15 in Austin. Get your tickets today!
