On Tuesday, the Senate voted unanimously to pass the Sun Protection Act, which would make daylight saving time permanent starting next year. This means that Hoosiers would be one hour ahead of what is currently known as standard time for the rest of the year. The change would bring later sunsets in the winter months, but also later sunrises. Supporters of the Sun Protection Act say it would reduce crime at night and encourage children to engage in more physical activity.
Most Americans just set their clocks forward one hour on Sunday, when daylight saving time began. Hawaii and most of Arizona don't observe the time change. It's been a popular debate in Indiana, but some health experts have concerns. Avidan says problems that arise from moving forward include doctors making more medical errors, more fatal heart problems, and a higher risk of depression and suicide.
He says that for some, those problems don't go away as long as daylight saving time occurs. Other experts, such as David Reich of the National Road and Safety Foundation, say that because we lose an hour of sleep and it's darker in the morning, there could be a higher risk of car accidents.Currently, Arizona and Hawaii are the only two states that do not respect daylight saving time. In the past four years, 18 states have enacted laws or resolutions to keep residents daylight saving time throughout the year, pending congressional approval. In some cases, legislation requires neighboring states to enact similar laws.
This year alone, nearly 30 states are considering daylight saving time legislations, according to NCSL. In some cases, even if the legislation is passed, it will not be able to take effect until your neighbors make the same move.By the mid-1960s, 18 states were observing daylight saving time and 12 were staying in standard time. In 1966, Congress passed the Uniform Time Act, implementing the current daylight saving time observed by 48 states. The Department of Transportation now attributes energy conservation, accident prevention and crime reduction to daylight saving time.Detractors of daylight saving time say scientific studies evaluating the impact of the time policy change on daylight saving time in Indiana have identified a significant increase in energy use and electricity spending by Indiana households.
Several counties in eastern Indiana (Ohio and Dearborn counties, near Cincinnati; and Floyd, Clark, and Harrison counties, near Louisville) chose to observe daylight saving time unofficially, despite Indiana statute.Indiana enacted the statute, officially placing northwest and southwest Indiana in the Central Time Zone, in observance of daylight saving time, and the rest of the state in Eastern Standard Time throughout the year. But in 1985, the Indiana General Assembly asked the USDOT to move five counties in southwest Indiana (Posey, Vanderburgh, Warrick, Spencer and Gibson) from the Central Time Zone to the Eastern Time Zone.Supporters of daylight saving time and a common time zone in Indiana often claim that Indiana should adopt the Eastern United States timing system to preserve interstate business with that region. City Debate, Indiana General Assembly Passed Bill to Put All of Indiana in Central Standard Time and Ban Daylight Saving Time.So should Indiana make daylight saving time permanent? It's a complex issue with many factors to consider. On one hand it could bring more energy savings and reduce crime at night.
On the other hand it could lead to more medical errors and an increased risk of car accidents due to lack of sleep. Ultimately it's up to each individual state to decide whether or not they want to make daylight saving time permanent.
