Government affairs

Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL) and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) reintroduced the Sunshine Protection Act of 2023 (H.R. 1279/S. 582) on March 1. The bill would make daylight saving time permanent and end the clock changes that take place every November and March.

Under current law, when clocks change in November, it gets dark as early as 4:30 p.m. in some parts of the country, causing letter carriers to spend more hours working in the dark. If enacted, the bill could decrease the hours worked in the dark by letter carriers.

Along with fewer hours worked in the dark, studies show that making daylight saving time permanent could benefit the public’s health, help the agricultural economy and lower energy usage.

Currently, the bipartisan legislation has 14 co-sponsors in the Senate—seven Republicans and seven Democrats—and 23 co-sponsors in the House—22 Republicans and one Democrat. The Senate passed a previous version of this bill in the 117th Congress, but it was not considered on the House floor.