House passes Trump-backed bill to make daylight saving time permanent

Trump praised the House vote in a Truth Social post, calling the measure to end twice-yearly clock changes great news for America.

First Published: July 15, 2026, 3:02 AM ET

WASHINGTON D.C. — The House passed a Trump-backed bill to make daylight saving time permanent, ending the twice-yearly clock change.

Donald Trump celebrated the vote on Truth Social, framing the measure as a win for the country. He linked to a news report on the legislation. The post arrived on July 15, 2026 at 6:49 AM ET.

Here is the full post on truthsocial: “Great News for America! House passes Trump-supported bill to make daylight savings time permanent: https://justthenews.com/government/congress/house-passes-trump-supported-bill-make-daylight-savings-time-permanent”

The bill would lock the clocks on the later evening light of daylight saving time year-round, eliminating the springtime shift forward and the autumn shift back. Federal law now sets daylight saving time from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November under the Uniform Time Act, which Congress passed in 1966 (see justthenews). States may opt out of daylight saving time and remain on standard time, but they cannot adopt permanent daylight time without an act of Congress.

The stakes reach every household that resets a clock, watches evening light shift, or manages a work schedule tied to fixed hours. Supporters argue permanent daylight time gives families brighter evenings and steadier sleep. Critics, including some sleep researchers, favor permanent standard time instead, warning that permanent daylight time leaves winter mornings dark for commuters and schoolchildren.

For the average reader, the practical effect is a settled clock. Households would stop losing an hour each spring and gaining one each fall. Evening daylight would extend later during winter months, while sunrise would arrive later.

Has this happened before? Yes, and the result was short-lived. Congress enacted year-round daylight saving time in 1974 during an energy crisis, then repealed it within months after public complaints about dark winter mornings. The Senate approved a permanent daylight time measure by unanimous consent in 2022, but the House never took it up, and the bill lapsed.

The next decision rests with the Senate, which must pass the measure before it can reach the president’s desk for signature. A date for a Senate vote has not been announced.

In the last 30 days, 59 of 513 Trump posts were on the topic of Domestic Policy, according to Zenger analysis.

Clock politics has divided Washington before. Congress first imposed daylight saving time in 1918 to conserve fuel during World War I, then repealed it a year later over farmer objections. Franklin D. Roosevelt reinstated year-round “War Time” in 1942 through the end of World War II. Each attempt to fix the clock has drawn a backlash that unwound the change, a pattern that has frustrated presidents and lawmakers for more than a century.