TL; DR. Well, it’s complicated, but science tells us that permanent standard time is best for our sleep and circadian biology, which is fundamental to overall health and well-being.
Sleep and circadian scientists advocate for ending the twice annual shifting of the clock. However, rather than switching to permanent daylight saving time, permanent standard time is linked with better health outcomes. At the heart of the matter is what time of day has more light: daylight saving time has more light at the end of the day, and permanent standard time has more light at the beginning of the day.
In July 2026, the Sunshine Protection Act, which would establish national year-round daylight saving time passed the House. The Senate has not brought it for vote. Voices from senators across the aisle, spoke against the bill. But because few legislative days remain this year, this makes it unlikely to advance. (In 2022, the bill passed the Senate but failed to pass the House.)
Also in July 2026, a new bipartisan bill, the Sunshine for Our Kids Act, was filed that would make permanent standard time the default but would allow for optional daylight saving time for states that choose it.
If passed either bill would end clock changes. There is general agreement from both the public and the scientific community that changing the clocks twice a year is inconvenient, unhealthy, and risky.
😵💫 The shift to daylight saving time in the spring is associated with increases in motor vehicle crashes, cardiovascular morbidity, stroke, and hospital admissions.
💡A more nuanced discussion is necessary about whether the clocks should shift to the permanent daylight saving time or to permanent standard time (as preferred by sleep and circadian scientists, safety experts, and educators). It is easy to understand the appeal of having longer, brighter evenings. Permanent daylight saving time may seem like you get more hours per day of sunlight, but in reality, the plan just shifts total bright hours from when we need them in the morning to later in the afternoon. It is both less healthy and less safe to shift our daylight hours to the evening.
Recent polling suggests Americans are choosing health and safety over golf.
A January 2025 Gallup Poll found that 54% of US adults want to end daylight saving time and 40% support keeping it. Permanent standard time was preferred by 48%, while only 24% preferred permanent daylight saving time. August 2026 polls by ActiVote and Rasmussen Reports also found greater support for permanent standard time (49% vs 26% and 41% vs 35%, respectively).
🤓 Nerd Alert: Our circadian rhythms rely on bright natural light in the morning to wake us up and to synchronize important biological processes, with dimmer light in the evening to make us sleepy and ready for bed. Morning light resets the body’s biological clock and improves sleep quality and duration, bringing with it a range of physical and mental health benefits. In contrast, evening light suppresses the sleep-promoting hormone melatonin and pushes bedtimes later, reduces sleep duration, and leaves your body out of sync with the environmental clock.
💡 Later sunrises and sunsets are associated with shorter duration and worse quality sleep and more irregular sleep patterns. They are also associated with higher rates of obesity, depression, suicide, cardiovascular disease, and cancer.
💡 A 2025 study used circadian informed modeling to permanent standard time would have a lower prevalence of both stroke and obesity compared to permanent daylight saving time or the current system.
💡 Teenagers and others with night owl tendencies and people with work start times before 8 AM will be disproportionately affected. A study comparing 10 years of standardized test data in Indiana found that students living with permanent standard time had higher test scores than those living with seasonal daylight saving time with disproportional impact on lower-income students.
💡 Some politicians argue the economic benefits of permanent daylight saving time, especially for industries like golf or retail, with little data to support those claims. On the other hand, a 2019 study showed that workplace productivity with more people missing or being late to work when sunrises are later, which would negatively impact the overall economy. Multiple studies show that sports injuries increase and sports performance worsen with circadian misalignment and sleep loss. Other studies show an increase in spending on energy bills and health care costs.
💡 Morning light also improves safety, especially for school children who wait for their school buses in the dark. In fact, the United States experimented by switching to permanent daylight saving time in 1974 and quickly reverted to a bi-annual clock change later that same year because of the unpopular dark mornings and an increase in morning vehicular crashes and injuries. A 2022 study also found that later sunrises and sunsets that were misaligned from the sun being overhead at noon by more than 30 minutes were associated with 21.8% more fatal car crashes.
A consistent year-round time system is agreed upon by the National Sleep Foundation, American Academy of Sleep Medicine, National Safety Council and National Parent Teacher Association, and other leading sleep and science-based organizations. The conversation about clock changes is not about whether you want more or less sunshine in your day, but rather what time of day the sunshine is preferable. Science indicates that morning sunshine is best for the overall health and safety of the public, which is why these organizations agree that permanent standard time is a better fit for our circadian rhythms and the better choice for health and well-being.
Useful links and further reading:
National Sleep Foundation’s 2021 Sleep in America® Poll Shows Gaps Between Public Sentiment and the Effects of Clock Change
Gentry et al article on traffic fatalities
Weed & Zeitzer article on obesity and stroke prevalence
Giuntella & Mazzonna article on economic effects by location within a time zone
Sleep experts say Senate has it wrong: Standard time, not daylight saving, should be permanent
When the US tried Permanent Daylight Saving Time in 1974
American Academy of Sleep Medicine Statement
Sleep research society position statement
Society for Research on Biological Rhythms Position Statement and Press Kit
Why Should We Abolish Daylight Saving Time?
Sunrise time charts, educational material and videos and advocacy information at Savestandardtime.com
