The senators from the Sunshine State are leading an effort to help the sun shine longer.
On Monday, U.S. Sen. Rick Scott announced his support for making Daylight Saving Time, which started Sunday, a permanent fixture.
Scott joins his fellow Florida Republican, Sen. Marco Rubio, in championing this cause.
“Changing the clock twice a year is outdated and unnecessary. We need to give families in Florida more sunshine, not less!” Scott said Monday in a statement.
“I’m proud to be leading this bipartisan legislation with Senator Rubio that makes a much-needed change and benefits so many in Florida and across the nation. It’s time for Congress to act, and we can begin by having the U.S. Senate pass this good bill today.”
Scott’s office released a graphic outlining his rationale for fighting to move the country off Standard Time each fall.
He says interrupting the clock throws farmers off their rhythm. More daylight means more outdoor activities and can help reduce childhood obesity, improve cardiovascular health, and promote fitness.
Sticking with year-round DST can make communities safer, reducing robberies and giving motorists more daylight to drive. Finally, more sunshine cuts electricity costs and boosts economic activity, which drops between 2.2 percent and 4.9 percent when clocks are turned back.
In his statement, Scott noted that as Florida’s governor in 2018, he signed a bill that would make DST permanent for the state if Congress created a way for that to happen.
On Saturday, Rubio renewed the argument for DST that he’s made yearly since 2018. This time he co-wrote an op-ed for CNN with left-wing Democratic U.S. Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts, who also supports Rubio’s proposed “Sunshine Protection Act.”
“We can’t always get bipartisan agreement in Congress these days, but here’s one thing we can agree on: we could all use a bit more sunshine,” the senators wrote. That’s why we’re working together in the US Senate to make sure we end the practice of ‘spring forward’ and ‘fall back’ by making daylight saving time permanent.”
Similar to Scott, Rubio called the twice-yearly time-shift a “senseless and outdated government policy” – one that 20 states have pledged to reject by passing resolutions.
In the op-ed, Rubio noted, “The effects of darker afternoons on our mental and physical health can be serious. The biannual transition of ‘spring forward’ and ‘fall back’ disrupts circadian sleeping patterns, causing confusion, sleep disturbances, and even an elevated risk to heart health.”
He pointed to studies that show, depending on which way the clock rolls, heart attacks, strokes, car wrecks, and depression all increase. Meanwhile, economic activity and outdoor recreation increase with longer periods of sunlight.
“Beyond the statistics, there’s the simple truth that we all like more sunshine,” Rubio and Markey wrote.
“It’s really straightforward: Cutting back on the sun during the fall and winter is a drain on the American people and does little to nothing to help them. It’s time we retire this tired tradition. Tell your senators to lighten up and back our Sunshine Protection Act.”
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Just(ly) DO It !