Keizer, ORE– A movement that is growing steam in the western United States seeks to halt the twice-yearly ritual of changing clocks.
Oregon lawmakers in conjunction with lawmakers in Washington, California, and Idaho are driving forward legislation that would see Pacific Standard Time become permanent, ditching Daylight Saving Time.
Oregon Senator for the 11th district in Kaeizer, Kim Thatcher, is spearheading the legislative push with Senate Bill 1548, set to be introduced when the Oregon legislative session rolls out on Feb. 5.
The bill emerges on the heels of a broader coalition among Western states, each state wrestling with the bureaucracy of time adjustment in its own right.
Thatcher says Oregonians have long-expressed their desire to stop changing the clock while Washington’s parallel legislative efforts have come to light with Senator Mike Padden introducing Senate Bill 5795, which had its public hearing last Tuesday.
Biologically, the argument for ditching the switch gains weight with studies linking the annual time shift to adverse health outcomes.
