News Release

INDIANA — Daylight saving time ends on Sunday, Nov. 5. Clocks will “fall back” one hour at 2 a.m. Once the time changes, the sun will rise and set earlier, with the night sky appearing well before 7 p.m.  Numerous attempts have come from the Senate and House to make daylight saving time permanent, eliminating the time change. However, the bills die before ever being signed into law.

When does the time change happen?
Daylight saving time ends 2 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 5. We “fall back” one hour.

Why do we have daylight saving time?
Daylight saving time dates back to World War I when Germany introduced it in hopes of conserving power and energy by extending daylight hours. In 1918, the Standard Time Act introduced daylight saving time to American clocks. In 1966, the Uniform Time Act of 1966 was passed to set a nationwide standard for daylight saving time from the last Sunday in April to the last Sunday in October. In 2005, former President George Bush changed the law and extended daylight saving time by a few weeks, from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November.

Do states have to abide by daylight saving time?
Yes and no. Despite the national adoption of daylight saving time, Arizona and Hawaii do not observe the time change. Under federal law, states are legally allowed to opt out of the time change and remain on standard time. However, states are not allowed to remain on daylight saving time.

Do statistics show daylight saving time does conserve power and energy?
Not really. Two studies, one conducted in 1975 and one in 2005, revealed that changes in energy consumption, traffic and crime during the daylight saving time were “statistically insignificant.” The 2005 research also found that each day of the extended daylight saving time lowered total national electricity consumption by 0.5%.

Is the Sunshine Protection Act going to pass? Will daylight saving time be permanent?
Florida Senators Marco Rubio and Vern Buchanan continuously reintroduce the Sunshine Protection Act. The passing of the bill would make daylight saving time the new standard time and would eliminate having to change our clocks biannually. In 2022, the Sunshine Protection Act of 2021 passed the Senate but died in the House of Representatives. Another version of the act was written in 2023, but it also failed to pass. According to the Congressional Research Service, since 2015, over 45 states proposed bills to change their observance of daylight saving time.