BY THE NUMBERS
By The Numbers, a look at what’s in the news . . . by the numbers. These are just numbers, not suggestions that they mean more or less than what they are. We do not suggest that one number is connected to another. These are simply facts with no extraneous details, bias or slanted reporting. To borrow (and perhaps mangle a bit) a quote from legendary fictional detective Joe Friday, it’s just the numbers, ma’am!
Feeling tired and groggy today? It’s no wonder! We all lost an hour of sleep yesterday! Yes, it’s that time of year when we “Spring Forward” with the clocks as part of Daylight Saving Time. Sine we are stuck with it for now, let’s take a closer look at DST – by the numbers!
15 . . . 6 . . . IX
Daylight Saving Time and time zones in the U.S. are defined in the U.S. Code, Title 15, Chapter 6, Subchapter IX – Standard Time . By act of Congress, civil clocks in most areas of the United States are adjusted ahead one hour in the summer months (known as Daylight Saving Time) and returned back one hour in the winter months (known as standard time).
As of 2007, Daylight Saving Time begins in the United States on the second Sunday in March and ends on the first Sunday in November.
1883
A standard time in time zones was instituted in the U.S. and Canada by the railroads that year. However, the U.S. government did not make it the law of the land untim passing the Standard Time Act on March 19, 1918. The Standard Time Act also established Daylight Saving Time, which was a contentious idea at the time. Huh! The more things change the more they remain the same!
1974-75
During the “energy crisis” years, Congress enacted earlier starting dates for Daylight Saving Time. In 1974, Daylight Saving Time began on Jan. 6 and in 1975 it began on Feb. 23. After those two years the starting date reverted to the last Sunday in April.
2007
After the switch up in the 1970s, there were a few more changes, notably in 1986, 1987 and 2005. However, in 2007 Daylight Saving Time was changed to start on the second Sunday in March and end on the first Sunday in November. Hey, it’s one of the few good things about the end of fall and beginning of winter. We get an extra hour of sleep back!
11-2-25
Speaking of . . . here’s the date when you can change the clocks back. It happens at 2 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 2.
3-8 and 11-1
Looking ahead to 2026, we Spring Ahead on March 8 and Fall Back on Nov. 1. Both happen on Sundays at 2 a.m.
2
Only two states in the U.S. don’t observe DST – Arizona and Hawaii. Of course Hoosiers might remember there were more . . .
4-2-2005
Back in 2005, then Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels and the Indiana Legislature passed a law that meant on April 2 of the following year, Indiana would become the 48th state to observe DST.