It’s been a minute since I heard or read the words “in a unanimous vote by the U.S. Senate.” So when the phrase crept into my newsfeed last week, I had to wonder if we were celebrating April Fool’s Day a bit early. But it turns out, pretty much everyone thinks the government forcing you to lose an hour of sleep is stupid.
Before the U.S. Senate voted unanimously in favor of the Sunshine Protection Act last week, Utah state Sen. Dan McCay lobbied his comrades in the Legislature to have Utah spring forward and stay that way. His bill ultimately failed, which is little surprise. Everyone knows the Utah Legislature is terrified of anything that might be considered forward moving. Had he sponsored a bill to turn the clocks back to 1850 in Utah, he’d likely have gotten a unanimous vote in favor.
Despite McCay’s unsuccessful bill, he might still prevail. The federal version of this piece of legislation — the Sunshine Protection Act — is set to go to the House of Representatives for a vote. If it passes, it will be signed into law by President Biden. Though right now, it does appear the House has hit the snooze button. There’s not currently a vote scheduled to take place.
When and if a vote does happen, and if the bill does pass, it’s expected Utah would switch to permanent daylight savings time. That’s because a few years ago, state lawmakers agreed to implement a permanent daylight savings time if the move first got congressional approval.
Sounds simple. But remember, we can’t agree on anything anymore, not even the time of day.
Most Americans despise changing their clocks twice a year, so the Senate got that part right. But many experts are losing sleep over the recent vote. Standard time should be the standard, they argue.
Dr. Beth Malow, a neurologist at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, recently testified before a House subcommittee on the matter. She agreed changing clocks twice a year is an idea whose time has passed. But she’s in favor of implementing permanent standard time. “It’s called standard time because ST lines up with our natural, biological rhythms,” she explained in her testimony.
There’s also evidence that it’s better for students and the early risers among us. Staying on a permanent daylight savings time would require the work and school commute to begin long before sunrise, which would inevitably lead to more accidents — that just happens more often in the dark.
In Park City, we’re especially impacted by such a decision. During the winter months, the sun wouldn’t creep over the mountains until nearly 9 a.m. And those early morning hours are when ski resort workers are ensuring they can safely open the hill. There’s a lot of prep work required before the chairs begin to turn, especially on a powder day. I’m not sure how comfortable anyone is with the idea of tossing explosives in the dark. It’s understandable the ski industry lobbied against McCay’s bill.
Though a permanent DST could work in our favor, if the resorts were willing to adapt. Right now, resort worker and school commuters overlap, competing for pavement and causing long delays that later impact skier traffic, which typically starts about 8 a.m. Highways 224 and 248 are usually moving at a glacial pace between 7:30-9 a.m., all winter long. If the resorts opened one hour later to accommodate a permanent DST, it’s reasonable to assume school traffic would be negligible by the time resort workers began their commute.
I’m not confident the House will move much faster than the current traffic in Park City. It could be months, even longer, before they take a vote. As for how it will impact Utah ski resorts, only time will tell.
Amy Roberts is a freelance writer, longtime Park City resident and the proud owner of two rescued Dalmatians, Stanley and Willis. Follow her on Twitter @amycroberts.