Daylight saving time is almost here — and it’s turning 100 years old

It survived the Great Depression, World War II, and endless gnashing of teeth about its good and bad points, and this month it celebrates its 100th birthday in the U.S.

Daylight saving time, which starts its annual eight-month run at 2 a.m. Sunday, was first enacted by the federal government March 19, 1918, during World War I as a way to conserve coal.

And though it was halted nationally later that year, it persisted in some form at local or state levels for decades before finally being recognized again nationally in 1966 by the Uniform Time Act.

To many a minor annoyance or a bit of relief, daylight saving time reminds us of the sun’s daily influence on our lives and tells us spring is on its way.

Who’s in charge of time?

Surprisingly, the Department of Transportation is in charge of daylight saving time and all time zones in the United States.

“The oversight of time zones was assigned to DOT because time standards are important for many modes of transportation,” the department’s website says.

The DOT says daylight saving is observed because it saves energy, saves lives by preventing traffic accidents and reduces crime.

The agency boasts that people tend to spend more time outside during daylight saving time, meaning they run household appliances and lights less during those eight months.

It is a crime deterrent, DOT says, because people are out during the daylight and not at night, “when more crime occurs.”

In 2007, the federal government expanded daylight saving time in order to reduce energy consumption. Daylight saving time now accounts for

about 65% of the year.

States have the final say

Not everyone agrees it offers energysaving benefits, however. Some studies report the time switch saves energy on lighting but is surpassed by increases in heating and air-conditioning.

Whether to observe daylight saving time is purely a state matter, so how a state determines that — through law, resolution or executive order — is up to the state.

Hawaii and most of Arizona don’t take part in daylight saving time. Arizona, which gets ample sunlight, opted out in 1968. But certain Native American reservations in Arizona still participate. Other non-observers are American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

Florida seeks a year-round shift

While those states and territories have given daylight saving the heaveho, a movement aimed at throwing a little more sunlight onto cold winter days is gaining traction across the nation. Twenty-six states considered making daylight saving time permanent last year, according to Time Zone, a group tracking and promoting the effort.

While ditching daylight saving involves a state merely notifying the DOT, enacting it year-round is more involved, including approval by Congress. A state cannot “permanently” stay on daylight saving time under federal law, the DOT says.

A bill to let Florida remain on daylight saving time year-round is headed to Gov. Rick Scott’s desk after the state Senate approved it 33-2 on Tuesday.

Florida state Sen. Greg Steube, a Republican, is behind the Sunshine Protection Act of 2018, which would put an end to the twice-a-year routine of moving the clock an hour ahead or behind. Steube thinks if Florida takes a stand, the idea will spread across the nation.