House committee holds first hearing on resolution urging Congress to allow permanent daylight saving time

Representative Pickelantonio and joint sponsor Representative Peterson presented sponsor testimony in favor of House Concurrent Resolution 10, which urges Congress to allow states to adopt permanent daylight saving time by passing federal legislation such as the Sunshine Protection Act of 2025.

The sponsors told the House Government Oversight Committee that eliminating the twice‑annual clock change would reduce injuries, improve traffic safety, expand evening daylight for families and businesses, and yield public‑health benefits. Representative Pickelantonio said the issue began as a personal concern about her children’s sleep and that studies she reviewed linked clock changes to negative health outcomes. Representative Peterson said the matter is federal and urged Congress to act so Ohio would not be “an island separate from the states that surround us.”

The resolution asks Congress to change federal law that currently prevents states from observing permanent daylight saving time, and specifically cites the Sunshine Protection Act of 2025 as the preferred federal vehicle to allow nationwide adoption.

Committee members asked sponsors about health and safety tradeoffs and precedent. Representative Frewey noted research on short‑term increases in heart attacks and workplace injuries after the spring time change and asked whether surrounding states are pursuing similar action; Representative Peterson cited Indiana, Arizona and Hawaii as states with differing time practices and said coordination with neighboring states matters for commerce and travel. Members discussed school‑start times as one mitigation for dark winter mornings and referenced American Medical Association guidance on later school start times for adolescents. Sponsors said they were open to the committee amending the resolution to prefer standard time instead of daylight saving time if the committee found that preferable; the core request is to end the twice‑annual clock shift.

No formal committee vote was taken on HCR 10 at the first hearing; sponsors answered questions and the item was concluded for this meeting. The resolution, as framed, does not change state law but seeks to influence federal legislation that would permit states to choose permanent daylight saving time.

Looking ahead, sponsors said they hope state support will encourage Ohio’s congressional delegation to advance the Sunshine Protection Act or equivalent federal legislation.