To Be Clear: Yes We Gain An Hour Sunday, November 6

Update: I updated the headline and excerpt of the story to reflect that in the fall we're actually getting that hour back that we lost in the spring. Or that we're actually gaining an hour on Sunday, November 6. Not losing one. Just to be clear, at 2:00 AM on Sunday, November 6, 2022 (or before bed) you'll set your clock back one hour.  

There's been a lot of talk over the past couple of years about ditching the time change and staying on Daylight Saving Time year-round. However, for all the talk and all the posturing of politicians yes we'll all need to turn the clocks back Saturday night before bed.

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I suspect there's no shortage of stories talking about ditching standard time, the effects staying on Daylight Saving Time will have on our communities, and more right here on this website. I've highlighted two of the stories I found in my search.

Yet for all the talk, and the United States Senate passing The Sunshine Protection Act this past spring, which would make Daylight Saving Time permanent we all will be turning our clocks back an hour this fall. Why? The House hasn't passed the bill and President Biden still needs to sign it.

So what's going on in The House? According to NBC Chicago, the bill stalled there this past spring because of other priorities. Although, in reality, as straightforward as it seems to decide whether to go all in on Daylight Saving Time, all in on Standard Time, or just keep the status quo, it's turned into a bit of a hot-button issue that I think some in politics don't want to touch.

There's some research that indicates staying on Standard Time would be better for our health. Other opinions say we should shorten the workday by an hour if we want to give everyone more daylight at the end of the day. You can check out the debate in this great article from NBC News.

On top of the health debate, even broadcasters have concerns about it. The broadcasting community's issue centers around two things. One, which won't be an issue if the entire country (except Alaska and Hawaii) adopts year-round Daylight Saving Time. The concern is what happens in those TV and radio markets that straddle two states, where one state is year-round DST, and the other isn't if each state makes its own determination about year-round Daylight Saving Time. That's an issue broadcasters don't want to deal with because it can mess with TV schedules and the like.

The second issue has to do with some AM stations that are required to power down at night to protect stations that are called clear channel stations that can be heard across large parts of America. Later sunrises and earlier sunsets may dictate when these stations can turn their power up and down, and being off air or at a lower power in the middle of a drive time means a loss of revenue for broadcasters.

So yes, on Sunday, November 6, 2022, at 2:00 AM CDT or sometime Saturday night before bed we'll turn our clocks back an hour at least one more time. Although, I wouldn't be surprised if we're still arguing about this next November.