House passes Sunshine Protection Act, making daylight saving time permanent

The U.S. House of Representatives approved the Sunshine Protection Act on a bipartisan 308‑117 vote in July, moving to make daylight saving time permanent across the nation.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, the chamber’s No. 2 Republican, hailed the vote as common‑sense, arguing that “there’s no reason Americans should lose an hour of sunlight at the end of the day when more daylight means more time with our families, more activity for our businesses and safer communities.”

There’s no reason Americans should lose an hour of sunlight at the end of the day when more daylight means more time with our families, more activity for our businesses and safer communities.

President Donald Trump amplified the push, posting on Truth Social that the twice‑annual clock change “costs our Country a fortune, is bad for Crime, stress on people, Sports, and just about everything else you can imagine.”

A ridiculous Clock changing process that takes place twice a year, costs our Country a fortune, is bad for Crime, stress on people, Sports, and just about everything else you can imagine.

Despite the overwhelming House support, the measure stalled in the Senate. Majority Leader John Thune told Politico there is “no clear path forward,” leaving the legislation in limbo as the chamber prepares for the upcoming November elections.

Opposition within the GOP centers on concerns about darker winter mornings. Senator Tom Cotton warned that permanent daylight saving time could force students to attend school in “the pitch dark,” citing Arkansas constituents who prefer earlier sunrise hours. Cotton emphasized that prior attempts at year‑round daylight saving were rolled back after similar issues arose.

Other senators, such as Alabama’s Katie Britt, noted that many constituents favor the change, while also acknowledging the need for continued dialogue. “We’ll look for a pathway to have dialogue about it … but I would anticipate, given the president’s energy around it, that we’ll have that dialogue and debate when we get back,” Britt said.

The debate revives a historical experiment from the Richard Nixon administration, which briefly tested year‑round daylight saving for 16 months before ending the trial early due to public pushback. Advocates argue that permanent daylight saving could boost economic activity and improve public safety, whereas critics warn of unintended consequences for schools and early‑morning commuters.

As the Senate weighs the bill, the nation watches to see whether the clock will finally stop changing twice a year or remain caught in the perennial debate over daylight saving time.