Daylight Savings Time

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Daylight saving time is either the first Sunday in April or the last Sunday in October. The easiest way to remember which direction to move the clock is with the grammar school verse 'Spring ahead, fall back'. At 2am all clocks will change position, moving either one-hour forward or one-hour back. The main reason 2 am was chosen was it would have minimal effect on the day-to-day business operation. Most people are home and not at work, and most businesses are closed.

Daylight savings time is not observed in the following locations:

  • The state of Arizona (Navajo tribes in Arizona do observe daylight saving time)
  • The Eastern Time zone portion of Indiana (the rest of Indiana does)
  • The entire state of Hawaii
  • The United States Protectorate territories Guam, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, US virgin islands

The first step was congress moving the entire country to standard time in 1918. During World War II president Roosevelt instituted daylight saving time. After the war participation was left to each individual state, this caused a lot of confusion. Finally in 1973 President Nixon signed the Daylight Saving Time Energy Act. In 1986 President Regan amended the law moving it from the last week in April to the first week in April.

As a safety tip and as part of periodic maintenance your local fire department probably recommends changing the battery in your smoke/fire detector when you change to daylight saving time.

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