Texas lawmakers may eliminate daylight savings time. Federal law does not allow states to observe daylight savings time year round. Credit: Evan L'Roy for The Texas Tribune
Lawmakers here and in Washington have long debated ending the practice of changing the clocks twice a year.
McALLEN — Texas lawmakers are reviving efforts to eliminate the decades-long practice of changing the clocks twice a year.
Several members of the Texas House and Senate have filed legislation meant to put an end to the seasonal tradition of losing an hour of sleep in the spring due to the start of daylight saving time, only to gain the hour back in the fall when clocks revert back to standard time.
Texas is on standard time right now and will begin observing daylight savings on March 9.
Most of the bills filed aim to adopt daylight saving time year-round, an effort that was pushed during the 2023 legislative session, however, state Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo, is trying a different approach. Her bill would adopt standard time year-round in Texas, the only option allowed under federal law.
If her legislation becomes law and if Congress ever allows states to observe daylight saving time year-round, voters would get to choose a preference between year-round standard time or daylight saving time.
“The twice-a-year clock change is disruptive and unnecessary,” Zaffirini said in a statement to The Texas Tribune. “Studies have linked these shifts to increased traffic accidents, negative health effects, and decreased productivity.”
Zaffirini’s bill follows similar legislation filed during the 2023 legislative session by Rep. Will Metcalf, R-Conroe. That bill, which would have adopted daylight saving time year-round, garnered bipartisan support among Texas House members but stalled in the Senate.
Metcalf again filed a bill to observe daylight saving time year-round this session, favoring longer, brighter evenings.
“Texas doesn’t need to wait for Washington,” Metcalf said in a news release. “By passing HB 1393, we’ll demonstrate leadership and send a strong message that Texans are ready to move forward.”
The Uniform Time Act allows states to exempt themselves from daylight saving time and stay on standard time the entire year. If they do observe daylight saving time, it must begin and end on federally mandated dates.
But that might change. U.S. Sens. Patty Murray, a Washington Democrat, and Rick Scott, a Florida Republican, reintroduced the Sunshine Protection Act that would make daylight saving time the national standard year-round. In 2022, the U.S. Senate approved a similar bill but the House did not take it up for a vote.
President Donald Trump also pledged to get rid of time changes in a social media post in December, though he pushed for eliminating daylight saving time.
