SAN ANTONIO – Are you tired of changing your clocks twice a year?
A pair of lawmakers from San Antonio have introduced bills in the 87th Texas legislative session that would let voters in Texas decide whether that practice, which many people complain about, should continue.
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State Sen. José Menéndez and Rep. Lyle Larson filed bills HB 1405 and SB 471 that would allow voters to choose between observing standard time or observing daylight saving time year-round.
The issue of daylight saving time, which has been the topic of conversation for over 100 years, is the practice of setting clocks forward one hour from standard time during the summer months, and back again in the fall, in order to make better use of natural daylight.
More than 200 daylight saving bills and resolutions have been introduced in almost every state across the country since 2015, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Several states have passed bills in favor of permanent daylight saving time. However, they need congressional approval to abolish the time change. For this to happen, Congress first has to pass a federal law allowing states to observe daylight saving time year-round, because today’s law only allows states to forgo daylight saving time, according to Time and Date.com.
“The practice of moving our clocks back and forth twice a year is something that needs to end,” Menendez, a Democrat, said. “Since repeatedly changing our clocks impacts the safety and health of our constituents; we believe that the people of Texas need to vote and make the ultimate decision to address this. This bill will allow Texans to pick a time they feel is best for them.”
“The practice of changing our clocks is nonsensical and has significant drawbacks. We want to give Texans an opportunity to vote on ending this practice by choosing between standard time year-round or daylight saving time year-round,” Larson, a Republican, said.
Larson has filed similar bills in past legislative sessions.