The state of Utah will “spring ahead” in March, and, if the governor signs a new bill, the state may stay at that time permanently.
On Wednesday, the Utah House voted in favor of making daylight saving time permanent and sent the bill to Gov. Gary Herbert’s desk for final approval. The House approved the legislation with a vote of 70 to 1.
The one opposing vote came from Rep. Robert Spendlove, who wasn’t opposed to ending the midyear time change but wanted the permanent time to add the extra hour of daylight in the morning, not in the evening. His peers disagreed, and the evening hour of daylight was approved in the final vote.
Sen. Wayne Harper, who supported ending the time change in the state Senate, said: “There was a survey done in 2017 stating that 74% of the people want to go to Daylight Savings Time year-round. There was a survey that was finished last week that says 71% of the people in Utah, and nationwide, want to stop changing the clock.”
If the governor signs the bill, the change would not immediately take effect. First, the state would seek approval from Congress. The bill also stipulates that four other West Coast states must agree on the time change as well before it is implemented in Utah.
Daylight saving time will begin on March 8 as an hour of daylight is pulled from the morning and tacked onto the evening. The tradition of daylight saving first became federal law in 1918. Both Arizona and Hawaii already do not recognize daylight saving in their states.
President Trump has also floated making daylight saving time permanent. Last March, he tweeted, “Making Daylight Saving Time permanent is O.K. with me!”
