The country moved a step closer to ending the ritual of springing forward and falling back. The House of Representatives on Tuesday passed the Sunshine Protection Act by a vote of 308 to 117, a lopsided, bipartisan margin for a bill that would make daylight saving time permanent and stop the twice-a-year clock change.

What the bill would do

Under the measure, the United States would stay on the later-sunset schedule it now observes from March to November all year round, unless a state chose to exempt itself before the law took effect. In practice, that means no more dark early-evening winters, but also later sunrises in the coldest months. The bill was sponsored by Representative Vern Buchanan, a Florida Republican, and drew support across party lines; the opposition, 22 Republicans and 95 Democrats, was itself bipartisan.

Not a done deal

A House vote is not a law. The bill now goes to the Senate, where a similar effort has stumbled before. The Senate actually passed a permanent-daylight-saving bill in 2022, only for it to stall in the House; more recently, Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas objected to fast-tracking the measure, warning that permanent daylight time would leave parts of the country with sunrises as late as 9 a.m. in winter. President Trump has publicly urged Congress to act.

The health debate

The politics of the clock cut across an unsettled science. Many sleep researchers argue that if the country is going to pick one time and stay there, it should choose permanent standard time, not daylight time, because standard time better matches the body's internal clock and morning light. Lawmakers, by contrast, often favor permanent daylight time for its longer, brighter evenings. Both sides agree on one thing: the back-and-forth switching itself is disruptive and unpopular.

What it means for California

Californians have been here before. In 2018, state voters approved a ballot measure clearing the way for the Legislature to move the state to year-round daylight saving time, but only if federal law allowed it. That federal permission is exactly what the Sunshine Protection Act would grant. If the bill clears the Senate and is signed, California would finally have the option to lock its clocks and leave the springtime "lost hour" behind for good.