Time to ‘spring forward’ for Daylight Saving Time next Sunday, March 12

It may not be spring just yet, but you wouldn’t believe it by the number of early blooms already showing up in neighborhood gardens. It is, however, just a couple of weeks away. In the meantime, preparations for spring activities are already underway, and Sunday, March 12, is time for clocks to change to give us that extra hour of daylight to enjoy these activities.

Daylight Saving Time starts at 2 a.m. on March 12, 2023. Georgians, along with most of the country, get to turn their clocks forward 1 hour to 3 a.m. local daylight time. According to the website timeanddate.com, most of the United States, including Georgia, will maintain this time until 2 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 5, 2023, when the time is scheduled to “fall back” once again to Eastern Standard Time.

In the United States, Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and most of Arizona don’t change their clocks, but the rest of the country does. Sunrise and sunset will be about 1 hour later on March 12, 2023 than the day before. There will be more light in the evening after what is also called Spring Forward, Summer Time, and Daylight Savings Time.

Every year, this change raises the debate on whether this should be the last time any change is made. In fact, 19 states, including Georgia, have enacted legislation to provide for year-round daylight saving time.

According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, full-time DST is not currently allowed by federal law and it would require an act of Congress to make a change.

The Sunshine Protection Act of 2021 is a bill that, if it ever passes, would mean Americans no longer have to change their clocks twice a year. The Sunshine Protection Act was passed by the Senate on March 16, 2022, but as of Feb. 28, the bill is still held up in the House and is not yet law.

The states that have passed laws in anticipation of the Sunshine Protection Act ever passing are: Alabama, Georgia, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Idaho, Louisiana, Ohio, South Carolina, Utah, Wyoming, Delaware, Maine, Oregon, Tennessee, Washington, Florida, California and Colorado. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, Massachusetts and Maine have commissioned studies on a full-time daylight saving time.