America Already Tried Permanent Daylight Saving Time, It Failed

Twice a year, like clockwork, the same debate pops up across Oklahoma. We either complain about losing an hour of sleep or we complain about it getting dark super-early, and everyone becomes an expert on Daylight Saving Time over on Facebook.

While there is plenty of debate about whether we should stay on DST year-round or opt instead for Standard Time, everyone agrees we should just pick one and stick to it.

It’s A Vibe

Oklahoma has been trying to become permanent DST for the better part of a decade now, but since that required federal permission, it's on the back burner in DC. Senator James Lankford has been pushing this idea for years. The Sunshine Protection Act even passed the Senate back in 2022. Then it dead-ended in the House. It's probably a dead bill by now, and yet here we are, still spinning the clocks twice a year.

The funny part is how modern this debate feels. Social media makes it sound brand new. Like we're the first generation to discover the annoyance of changing clocks.

Spoiler, We're Not

We've done all of this before, and people hated it. America literally bailed on permanent DST almost instantly. It was too big of a change.

Here's the setup... It was 1973, the country was in the middle of an oil crisis, and energy conservation became the national obsession overnight. Lawmakers were searching for anything that might save fuel, and permanent Daylight Saving Time floated to the top of the idea pile.

The thinking was simple. More daylight in the evening meant less electricity use. Less lighting. Less energy. Problem solved.

So Congress passed a law to put the entire United States on year-round Daylight Saving Time starting in January of 1974. This was supposed to be a two-year experiment.

At first, people loved it. Polling showed around three-quarters of Americans supported the idea before it even started. Extra daylight after work sounded perfect. Long summer evenings all year long. No more clock changes. Everyone wins, but it didn't last long into the year.

Noboy Was Ready When Winter Came

As winter fell across America, permanent DST meant sunrise wasn't coming until mid-morning. In many places, the sun did not come up until around 9 AM, which sounds fine until you picture daily life in 1973.

People used to let their kids walk to school back then, and they were doing it in the dark. Bus stops were dark in the morning. Your average commute was happening in the pitch black. It didn't take long for parents to bring up safety concerns.

News stories started highlighting accidents involving children walking to school in the dark. A few tragic deaths made national headlines.

Public Opinion Flipped Overnight

We may hate changing clocks, but the idea of dark winter mornings may be even worse.

Public support dropped fast. That original 75 percent approval fell to around 40 percent in less than a year. The two-year experiment did not even make it to its first birthday. By October of 1974, Congress pulled the plug early and brought back Standard Time.

We've been doing the twice-a-year clock shuffle ever since.

This is the part nobody remembers when the debate comes back every March and November. Been there, done that. It's also why I'm a huge fan of Standard Time year-round. I'll gladly exchange my 9:45 PM sunset for dark-by-9 in July any day of the week, and twice on Sundays.

In the meantime, we'll keep arguing like this is a brand new idea. Pushing the idea that permanent Daylight Saving Time sounds fresh and modern and obvious, but in reality, the country test drove it fifty years ago and decided the winter mornings were a deal breaker.

This is one reason why my idea to split it up the middle seems more appealing. A compromise to permanently split DST and Standard Time on the half hour gives both sides half of what they're asking... even if it's a wild result.