A senior US senator has conceded that legislation to lock the clocks permanently to daylight saving time faces a difficult path through the Senate, casting doubt on the prospect of an end to the twice-yearly time change in America. The senator, whose name has not been disclosed by sources, reportedly told colleagues that the bill lacks sufficient bipartisan support to overcome procedural hurdles.
The Sunshine Protection Act, which would abolish the biannual switch and keep the US on daylight saving time year-round, previously sailed through the Senate by unanimous consent in March 2022. However, it stalled in the House of Representatives amid disputes over whether to adopt permanent daylight saving or permanent standard time. The bill was reintroduced in 2023 and again in 2025, but has not advanced.
Opponents of the measure argue that permanent daylight saving time would plunge northern states into darkness until well after 8am during winter months, raising safety concerns for schoolchildren and early-morning commuters. Others contend that the decision should rest with individual states rather than the federal government. Currently, Hawaii and most of Arizona already observe permanent standard time.
For UK readers, the outcome of this debate carries practical consequences. The UK currently shifts between Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) and British Summer Time (BST), aligning roughly with US time changes. If America adopts permanent daylight saving time, the time difference between London and New York would shift to four hours for half the year, rather than the current five-hour difference during BST. This could affect scheduling for financial markets, international conference calls, and travel itineraries.
Analysts note that the UK has previously experimented with permanent BST during a three-year trial from 1968 to 1971, but reverted after a lack of consensus. The British Chambers of Commerce has previously estimated that the biannual clock change costs UK businesses hundreds of millions of pounds in lost productivity and disrupted schedules. However, no formal proposal to revisit the issue is currently before Parliament.