Answer Man: Is Daylight Saving Time here to stay in North Carolina?

Today's burning question is about when we'll get that extra evening daylight hour, and if there are plans for it to be done away with or made permanent. Got a question for Answer Man or Answer Woman? Email Interim Executive Editor Karen Chávez at KChavez@citizentimes.com and your question could appear in an upcoming column.

Question: When is Daylight Saving Time this year? There was a lot of talk about doing away with it. Are some states opting out? Why? What’s the purpose? Is there a chance that North Carolina will ever opt out or that we’ll keep Daylight Saving Time permanently?

Answer: The clock is set to spring forward an hour early on the morning of March 12, 2023.

While we might get some more time to enjoy the outdoors, Daylight Saving Time has some (murky and debated) policy implications.

“DST was originally enacted as a way to save energy by giving more daylight in the evening hours, but some studies have called into question the degree of energy savings,” according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. “Other studies have shown negative impacts on people’s health and circadian rhythms because of time changes as well as a higher number of car crashes and workplace injuries in the days after a time change. The Transportation Department website states that DST saves energy, saves lives and prevents traffic injuries, and it reduces crime since people tend to be out and about more in daylight hours as opposed to the night when most crimes are committed.”

So, there’s some ambiguity and debate around DST, whether it matters in the first place and, if so, whether it’s for better or worse. As far as everyday, notable effects, there’s little to say. Take the word of the National Weather Service, which tends to care about the sun quite a bit.

“It doesn’t impact us too, too much,” said Clay Chaney, a meteorologist. He noted that it affects when the NWS puts out some forecasts.

“Someone that’s working the night shift would end up getting off an hour early,” he added.

And of course it gives “a little more time for some heating during the day,” he said.

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There has been discussion of ditching Daylight Saving Time, making it permanent or toying with it in other ways. Several states – Alabama, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Louisiana, Maine, Minnesota, Montana, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming – have enacted legislation or resolutions related to DST, according to reporting earlier this month from The Hill. In North Carolina, legislation failed to pass. Some other states have asked the federal government to make it permanent, which could still happen.

The reason? Well, it’s kind of annoying to change the clock.

“State legislatures have considered at least 450 bills and resolutions in recent years to establish year-round daylight saving time as soon as federal law allows it,” according to the NCSL. “Much of the legislation would stop the disruption-causing, twice-yearly clock switching. Inherent in the debate is whether to enact either permanent standard time or permanent daylight time. The federal Uniform Time Act allows the former option but not the latter. A CBS News poll in March 2022 found that 46% of U.S. residents preferred daylight saving time all year round, 33% preferred standard time year-round and 21% were okay continuing to clock switch twice a year.”

The Sunshine Protection Act of 2021 would make DST permanent nationally. It’s been approved by the Senate. It remains to be seen whether the House of Representatives and President Joe Biden will do their part to make it the law of the land.

Ryan Oehrli covers public safety, breaking news, courts and other beats for the Citizen Times. Comments? Questions? Tips? Send them to coehrli@citizentimes.com or 252-944-6816. Follow Oehrli on Twitter at @oehrli. Please support daily and enterprise journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Answer Man: Is Daylight Saving Time here to stay in North Carolina?