Daylight saving 2023: US Senate OK'd Sunshine Protection Act. Florida will still fall back

Despite efforts to permanently end daylight saving time in Florida and beyond, it's almost time to fall back.

Daylight saving time 2023 officially ends in November. At 2 a.m. ET on the first Sunday after Halloween, we'll set our clocks back by one hour — unless you live in a state or area that does not observe daylight saving time.

Below are things to know about the age-old practice, why we spring forward and fall back, the Sunshine Protection Act, and other facts about daylight saving time.

What is daylight saving time?

According to timeanddate.com, "daylight saving time is the practice of setting the clocks one hour ahead of standard time to make use of more sunlight in the spring, summer, and fall evenings. Daylight Saving Time (DST) is used to save energy and make better use of daylight. It was first used in 1908 in Thunder Bay, Canada."

Daylight saving time became a national standard in 1966 when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Uniform Time Act, which was established as a way to continue to conserve energy. The thinking was, if it's light out longer, that's less time you'll need to use lights in your home.

When is daylight saving time 2023?

Daylight saving time for 2023 was 2 a.m. EST Sunday, March 12, for "spring forward" and will end at 2 a.m. EST Sunday, Nov. 5, 2023, for "fall back." Fun fact: "Spring forward" occurred on the same day as the 95th annual Academy Awards.

When is daylight saving time 2024?

Daylight saving time for 2024 will be at 2 a.m. EST Sunday, March 10, for "spring forward" and 2 a.m. EST Sunday, Nov. 3, for "fall back." Fun fact: Election Day 2024 is Tuesday, Nov. 5, two days after daylight saving time.

Why do we change our clocks twice a year?

Those who support ending daylight saving time permanently advocate brighter afternoons and more economic activity. In Florida, ending daylight saving time could help tourism, legislators say.

Daylight saving time math: 'Spring forward, fall back,' meet '3 hours in the summer, 2 in the winter'

What is the Sunshine Protection Act?

It's important to note this is a bill in U.S. Congress and not the Florida Legislature. It was not a part of the Florida legislative session (which ended May 5, 2023).

The Sunshine Protection Act would permanently extend daylight saving time from eight months of the year to the full 12 months. The bill was first introduced in January 2021 by Rep. Vern Buchanan and reintroduced by Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Florida and seven other bipartisan members of Congress in March 2022.

The bill would make daylight saving time permanent across the U.S. The measure has not yet been passed by the U.S. House of Representatives, nor has it been signed into law by President Biden.

Click here to read the Sunshine Protection Act of 2021 bill from congress.gov.

Did the Sunshine Protection Act pass?

The Sunshine Protection Act of 2021 passed the Florida Legislature, but Florida could not implement the law without Congress' approval. It did not pass the U.S. House.

Rubio sponsored the bill in the Senate while Buchanan, R-Longboat Key, filed the House companion bills.

According to the bill on congress.gov, all actions have taken place in March — in 2021, Rubio introduced it; in 2022, the House "held at the desk," which means they never voted on it.

On March 2, 2023, 12 U.S. senators reintroduced legislation that would make daylight saving time − commonly referred to as daylight savings time, daylight-saving time, and daylight's saving time (all are incorrect, by the way, according to AP Style) − permanent, nearly a year after the Senate voted unanimously to end changing the wall clocks twice a year.

Buchanan and Sen. Marco Rubio recently reintroduced the Sunshine Protection Act to make daylight saving time permanent.

“Changing our clocks twice a year is inconvenient and entirely unnecessary. It's time to end this antiquated practice,” Buchanan said in a March 3 news release, just over a week before daylight saving time started for 2023.

Another strong supporter of nixing daylight saving time? Sen. Rick Scott. In 2018 when he was Florida governor, Scott signed legislation aimed at putting the Sunshine State on year-round daylight saving time — but such a change required congressional approval. Scott is one of the legislators who reintroduced the Sunshine Protection Act of 2023.

Did the Sunshine Protection Act of 2023 pass?

On March 1, 2023, Rubio’s bill was introduced and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Buchanan’s identical bill was introduced and referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce on March 1, then referred to the Subcommittee on Innovation, Data, and Commerce on March 10.

Did Benjamin Franklin invent daylight saving time?

Not exactly. Benjamin Franklin was likely one of the first to talk about daylight saving time in the 1780s, presumably to save money on candles.

Who invented daylight saving time?

While daylight saving time was Ben Franklin's idea, we don't know for sure if he invented it. Daylight saving time was used sporadically starting with World War I for various reasons, then made the law of the land in 1967.

During the 1973 oil embargo, it became a one-year-long experiment to see how much oil it would save.

Is it daylight savings time, daylight saving's time, or daylight saving time?

It's daylight saving time. No hyphen, no apostrophe and no extra S in the phrase. Also, no capitalization. However, for people searching the term online, these results come up: "Daylight Saving Time," "daylight savings" and "daylight savings time."

What does 'spring forward, fall back' mean?

According to dictionary.com, daylight saving, commonly referred to as daylight savings, "is begun in the spring by setting clocks one hour ahead. They are then set one hour back in the fall. ... People often use the simple mnemonic spring forward, fall back to remember to set clocks forward one hour (e.g., from 2 a.m. to 3 a.m.) in the spring and backward one hour (e.g., from 2 a.m. to 1 a.m.) in the fall."

Why all the hype around daylight saving time?

We live in a time-obsessed culture. What time is it? When's dinner? How soon until I take my 30-minute lunch break from work? What time can I start trick-or-treating on Halloween? What time should I start my Halloween party? How many days or hours until we celebrate Diwali, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah or Christmas?

And, of course, one of the most popular holidays of all time revolves around a clock — New Year's Eve. Worldwide, we love that holiday so much, we dress up, drink Champagne at midnight, or watch a ball drop (in person, virtually or on TV). So when we have to alter our schedules or time, it has a big impact on our lives.

Was daylight saving time affected by Halloween or candy makers?

This has been a popular search topic: Did candy makers have anything to do with daylight saving time changes?

An NPR report in March 2007 addressed the query during an "All Things Considered" interview with host Melissa Block and Michael Downing, author of "Spring Forward: The Annual Madness of Daylight Saving Time."

"This may be kind of an urban legend, but I thought I had heard that one of the backers behind extending Daylight Saving Time into the beginning of November was the candy industry, and it all had to do with Halloween," Block said in the NRP excerpt.

"This is no kind of legend," Downing responded, adding, "this is the truth. For 25 years, candy-makers have wanted to get trick-or-treat covered by Daylight Saving, figuring that if children have an extra hour of daylight, they'll collect more candy."

A 2020 story in USA TODAY also mentioned the Halloween-daylight saving time tie: "Lobbyists for the golf industry told Congress in 1986 that just one hour of extra natural light during the day would result in about $200 million in extra sales; the barbecue industry estimated that extra revenue for them would be around $100 million. The candy lobby wanted to benefit as well, claiming that one more hour of sunlight on Halloween would result in more trick or treating and therefore more candy purchases," the story states.

In reality, the Energy Policy Act of 2005 extended daylight saving time from the first Sunday in April to the second Sunday in March (three or four weeks earlier than the previous law), and in the fall from the last Sunday in October to the first Sunday in November (one week later than the previous law), according to a U.S. Department of Energy report. It went into effect in 2007.

When does daylight saving time occur?

As mentioned in the paragraph above, in the past the daylight saving time range was between late February and late October. It was changed in the mid- to late-2000s to where it stands now, which is May and November.

Which cities in Florida are not in the Eastern Time Zone?

Most of Florida is in the Eastern Time Zone, except for Pensacola, Panama City, Marianna, Chipley, Defuniak Springs, Valparaiso, Fort Walton Beach and Crestview.

Does daylight saving time affect Floridians in Central Time Zone?

Yes. Central Time can be a big frustration for Pensacolians and other Panhandle residents. In a work sense, it could be very difficult scheduling meetings if you're on CT and a colleague is in the Eastern Time Zone. Try scheduling an outing with friends from Tallahassee when neither is quite sure when to leave the house in order to arrive on time!

Who's in charge of daylight saving time?

The U.S. Department of Transportation oversees the nation's time zones and the uniform observance of daylight saving time, according to transportation.gov. The oversight of time zones was assigned to the DOT to help keep track of transportation. The DOT manages daylight saving time and cites energy reduction and reduced crime as reasons for the time change.

What is the Standard Time Act?

The Standard Time Act of 1918 was the first federal law that implemented standard time and daylight saving time.

The U.S. Department of Transportation states, "federal oversight of time zones began in 1918 with the enactment of the Standard Time Act, which vested the Interstate Commerce Commission with the responsibility for establishing boundaries between the standard time zones in the U.S. This responsibility was transferred from the Interstate Commerce Commission to DOT when Congress created DOT in 1966."

What is the Uniform Time Act?

In 1966 when the U.S. Department of Transportation was created, the Uniform Time Act established a system of uniform daylight saving time across the U.S. It simplified when and where daylight saving time would take effect.

Which states don't observe daylight saving time?

Arizona and Hawaii do not recognize DST. There's also no need to change the clocks in Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam and the Northern Marianas.

Which states don't want to observe daylight saving time?

More than 30 states considered legislation related to the practice of changing clocks twice a year, and seven states — Alabama, Arkansas, Nevada, Oregon, Tennessee, Washington and Florida — have already approved the legislation. However, these states still need the OK from Congress to enact the change.

Which countries observe daylight saving time?

Daylight saving time is used in more than 70 countries worldwide and affects more than a billion people each year. The beginning and end dates vary from one country to another.

What are the pros of daylight saving time?

If permanent daylight saving time takes effect, the biggest pro by far would be no sleep disruption. No need to change your clock twice a year before, at or after 2 a.m. on a Sunday in the fall and spring.

Other perks would be more time during the day to be out and about, and experts say it's better for your health — no sleep disruption. No preparing-for-bed or waking-up habits to change.

What are common complaints about daylight saving time?

Likely the No. 1 complaint about daylight saving time is the disruption of sleep and habit.

Safety is another hot topic: Schoolchildren at bus stops became the issue, and after eight Florida school kids died in accidents, Florida Gov. Reuben Askew led an effort to curtail daylight saving time to eight months between late February and late October.

Contributing: Lisa Nellessen-Savage, Pensacola News Journal; Antonio Fins, Palm Beach Post; Jesse Mendoza, Herald-Tribune; KiMi Robinson, Arizona Republic

Sangalang is a lead digital producer for USA TODAY Network-Florida. Follow her on Twitter or Instagram at @byjensangalang. Support local journalism. Consider subscribing to a Florida newspaper.

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: 2023 daylight savings time: When we fall back, Sunshine Protection Act