New England states are considering the idea of sticking with daylight saving time year 'round. Proposals to make the switch are being taken up by several legislatures, including Maine's.
The idea is to stop "falling back" and "springing ahead" at each change of seasons and shine a little more light on cold winter evenings. But there are political and other considerations when it comes to the passage of time.
The concept of adjusting the clock to suit social needs appears to be Benjamin Franklin鈥檚, in a jesting bit of advice to the French to start their days earlier, work more during the sunny hours and thereby save on candle wax. In 1962 our federal government standardized the practice of 鈥渄aylight saving time鈥� and, now, 48 U.S. states deploy it in an effort to match work hours and sunlight.
But here on the East Coast, it has its critics.
鈥淭he minute you set that clock back and it鈥檚 darker earlier it鈥檚 just, blah,鈥� says Dean Pike, who owns the Moose Island Marine services shop in Eastport, very close to the easternmost point in the continental U.S.
They see the sun first there, but they are also first to see it set, and from mid-November through the early January, that moment comes before 4 p.m.
鈥淚n the fall it just kills us. You know, it鈥檚 better for us to have it lighter later, the problem is, if Maine does it alone look at how it鈥檚 going to affect you calling your suppliers. It would be nice if it was a regionwide decision,鈥� Pike says.
He could be in luck on that. Discontent with the current system can be found regionwide. Ask Keith Murphy, who moved to Bedford, New Hampshire, some 13 years ago.
鈥淚 remember moving here in January and it got dark at 4:15 p.m., and I was astonished 鈥� because it was not what I was used to,鈥� he says.
Murphy happens to be a member of New Hampshire鈥檚 Legislature, and he introduced a bill back in the dark days of February that could end that state鈥檚 annual clock-hop and instead stay year 鈥榬ound with daylight saving time, also known in this region as Atlantic standard time.
Murphy鈥檚 bill has passed the New Hampshire House, with a proviso that Massachusetts and Maine switch too and that the federal government gives permission.
Similar measures have passed Maine鈥檚 House and Senate, with the same proviso that neighbor states act, as well. In Massachusetts, a commission appointed by Gov. Charlie Baker is set to make recommendations on the question within a month or two. Lawmakers in the rest have New England have at least submitted similar bills, although no one seems to be spending a lot of political capital on the issue.
But it is about a lot more than early sunsets. A growing body of research shows that when we lose that hour of sleep each spring, we suffer a kind of jet lag.
鈥淪witching to daylight saving time, particularly during the spring, is problematic, because it disrupts the circadian cycle that we have. And when it gives that shock to our system we are not immediately able to change,鈥� says David Wagner, a sleep and workplace researcher at the University of Oregon鈥檚 Lundquist Business College.
Wagner says that in the days just after the clocks are set forward, especially 鈥淪leepy Monday,鈥� many ills can result, with the rate of heart attacks and strokes rising and more accidents suffered by miners and drivers.
And decision-making patterns change, Wagner says 鈥� judges tend hand out harsher sentences, for instance. And at work?
鈥淚t turns out that people cyber-loaf more, which is using their computers for things that are not work-related, surfing the web, and we also found moral awareness decreases. People are not kind of tuned in to the moral implications of various situations,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e鈥檝e got a current paper that we鈥檙e working on looking at policing and prejudice that occurs in policing, and that鈥檚 exacerbated in conditions of sleep deprivation.鈥�
But even with the mounting evidence of the problems posed by switching clocks back and forth, there is a good deal of skepticism about changing the habit.
In Maine, the Chamber of Commerce worries that business transactions, especially those with the financial capital of New York City, will be slowed, while shipping and travel between border states could get pretty confusing. And in Northern New England, there can be a flinty reluctance to make decisions contingent on what heavyweight Massachusetts does.
And for some people who start their workday early in morning, like Benjamin King, a barista at Portland鈥檚 Coffee By Design, the morning sun is a blessing they鈥檇 like to hold onto right through winter.
鈥淏ecause people want to start their day in the light versus the end of the day. We鈥檙e used to it getting dark so it really doesn鈥檛 matter what time it gets dark,鈥� he says.
King probably doesn鈥檛 have to worry, at least for the moment: Maine Gov. Paul LePage, known for his well-used veto pen, says the idea of changing the current system is 鈥渁n insane thought.鈥� But with research, and lawmakers around New England, increasingly highlighting problems with the practice, it could be just a matter of time.
Copyright 2017