MA Residents Are Getting Ready For A Yearly Dreaded Adjustment

“Fall back” is almost here. Massachusetts residents are getting ready to once again turn those clocks back one hour which means darkness will set in earlier than usual (are you ready for those sunsets that take place at 4:30 pm?) and winter will set in earlier than expected. On the average we'll experience less than 10 hours upon returning to standard time.

That practice has changed after the implementation of the Energy Policy Act of 2005. A provision in that law was enacted by Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey who was a U.S. Representative at that time, enacted the extension of daylight saving time. Markey partnered with Michigan U.S. Representative Fred Upton to implement a provision, which amended the Uniform Time Act of 1996 to increase daylight saving time and reduce standard time, but that doesn't seem to be in the cards.

Statistics show there are many who don’t want the clocks to change at all, though they disagree about whether standard time or daylight saving is better. The debate continues as this move also confuses individuals and causes setbacks in their sleeping habits which also results in cases of fatigue and disruption in their daily lives.

Meanwhile, in Massachusetts, State Representative Angelo Puppolo Jr. of Springfield sponsored a state-level bill, that would also end the practice of switching clocks, but it would keep us in a standard time mode which would result in the elimination of daylight saving time.

Two states, Hawaii and Arizona, already don’t have to worry about changing their clocks as both states opted out of using daylight saving time: Hawaii in 1967 and Arizona followed a year later because they already had plenty of daylight. Let's see if this can be a similar scenario here in The Commonwealth. We'll be on the lookout and keep you posted on the latest developments