Pa. House bill seeks to make DST permanent

The Pennsylvania House of Representatives on Monday passed legislation urging Congress to do away with the semi-annual clockchanging ritual and authorize states to make Daylight Saving Time permanent.

By a vote of 103-98, the House chose to join 15 other states that have passed legislation asking for this change that is currently not allowed by federal law.

Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, RLehigh County, who sponsored the bill, said studies show that staying on Daylight Saving Time will save energy, reduce traffic crashes, reduce crime and lead to healthier lifestyles. The bill, which passed the House State Government Committee by a vote of 23-2, now moves to the state Senate for consideration.

“In the future, I think this is a very positive reform for Pennsylvania, changing time twice a year is incredibly inefficient and an outdated practice,” Mr. Mackenzie said.

He noted less than 40% of the countries around the world recognize some form of Daylight Saving Time and that number is decreasing.

Rep. Kevin Boyle, D-Philadelphia, pointed out that making this change would mean on Dec. 21 sunrise in Philadelphia would be at 8:19 a.m. and in Pittsburgh, at 8:39 a.m. He indicated this could be “very consequential legislation” that in retrospect they come to regret.

“I don’t think that this is properly appreciated by the members of this body,” Mr. Boyle said. “I think we need more time to consider this legislation.”

To that, Mr. MacKenzie said, “This legislation does not increase or decrease the amount of daylight that is going to be available for residents of Pennsylvania but what it does do is shift those daylight hours to be more consistent with the working and living hours which people are utilizing in today’s economy.”