Utahns will need to keep changing their clocks, at least for now.
The Legislature’s latest effort to ditch daylight saving time failed to pass out of a Feb. 19 committee hearing. HB120 would have moved Utah to mountain standard time year-round, joining Arizona.
It passed the House, but the Senate Business and Labor Committee voted to table it, essentially putting the effort on life support for the rest of the current session.
Republican Sen. Todd Weiler, who motioned to table the bill, said he wants to stop changing clocks only when Utah can go to permanent daylight saving time and not be an outlier among most of its neighboring states.
“I do think when we make this change, we should do it with some other states. Because we are a peculiar people, but I don't know that we want to be extra peculiar.”
Going to year-round standard time is the only option the state has right now, however. A switch to permanent daylight time would require an act of Congress.
“We can let this thing die, which it sounds like it will, and punt the ball to the federal government and hope that they take the lead,” said bill sponsor Rep. Joseph Elison. “I'd rather take the lead in Utah, personally.”
The bill’s apparent defeat doesn’t mean Utahns won’t continue to be interested in this idea, though. Elison said it was the most tracked bill on the Utah Legislature’s website this session and that changing our clocks twice a year is one of the most common complaints he hears from constituents.
Some of those concerns are from Utah parents, like Stacy Muhlestein of Monticello, who spoke in favor of the bill. Especially with children who have autism, she said the forced change in routine has negative effects.
“For our families, the changing of the clocks does not affect just one hour of sleep,” she said. “It causes weeks of upheaval, with many nights of repetitive sleep loss.”
Medical organizations nationwide have also advocated for moving to permanent standard time because of research that suggests it would improve sleep and prevent some health issues.
Other groups who benefit from an extra hour of evening light in the summer opposed the effort, though.
Salem City Manager Matt Marziale spoke on behalf of the Utah Recreation and Parks Association. Earlier sunsets could hurt youth sports, he said, and push cities to create more grassy space or install more field lights to continue offering the leagues they do now.
“We take advantage of every light hour that we can possibly get,” he said. “Changing the structure is, in our opinion, limiting our efforts to provide a healthy Utah.”
