MIAMI,- With the arrival of summer time or Daylight Saving Time 2024the next one is coming Time change in USAand the vast majority of American citizens will have to set their watches again.
What day does daylight saving time start?
This change, which usually takes place twice a year, will take place next Sunday, March 10, 2024, at 2 in the morning. The last time this modification was made was on November 5, 2023, which served to welcome winter time.
During this season, many people will need to set their clocks ahead one hour from standard time. But, it should be noted that electronic devices such as phones, tablets and laptops update it automatically.
This new schedule will end on Sunday, November 3, the date on which the hot season officially ends, and therefore the clock must be set back one hour at 1:00 am.
Why do they change the time in the US?: origin of daylight saving time
The origin of this measure in the country dates back to 1784, when the politician and scientist Benjamin Franklin suggested in a writing, among several measures to minimize the use of light, that advancing the time at the beginning of spring could allow savings. considerable.
It then took root with the implementation of the Daylight Saving Time Act of 1918, in order to optimize energy savings during World War I.
This measure consisted of adjusting the clocks to make better use of sunlight during the warmer months, thus reducing the need to use artificial light in the afternoons and evenings.
Over the years, the dates have been adjusted. However, it was with the enactment of the Uniform Time Act of 1966 that the system was established uniformly as a legal requirement throughout the nation.
But it was not until 2005 that the Energy Policy Act, signed by then-president George W. Bush, stipulated that starting in 2007 daylight saving time would begin on the second Sunday in March and end on the first Sunday in November.
Territories and states that do not have time change
Although it is a tradition adopted in the United States more than a century ago, some states such as Hawaii and Arizona, with the exception of the Navajo Nation, are not affected by this time change, so they are not forced to advance the day one hour. clock.
Other US territories that will not have to set their clocks forward are Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands.
In March 2022, the United States Senate unanimously passed the Sunshine Protection Act bill that would establish permanent daylight saving time across the country. The proposal sought to ensure that Americans would no longer change their watches twice a year.
Despite this, it was not approved by the House of Representatives nor did it reach President Joe Biden’s administration for promulgation, necessary steps to become law. The legislators argued that they were not sure which was the best schedule, whether the standard or the summer schedule.
@Lydr05
Source: With information from La Nación and El Tiempo
