House Votes to Make Daylight Saving Time Permanent, Trump to Sign if Bill Clears Senate
The House passed legislation to make Daylight Saving Time permanent, but the bill faces an uncertain future in the Senate.
The mood of the chamber was captured by Rep. Scott DesJarlais, the Republican from Tennessee who presided over the vote and played the Beatles song “Here Comes the Sun” on his phone as he announced the vote tally, according to NBC News.
The final vote was 308-117, according to Politico — 22 Republicans and 95 Democrats opposed the bill.
Florida legislators were enthusiastic about the so-called Sunshine Protection Act.
“Why in the heck are we still changing our clocks?” Rep. Kat Cammack, a Republican from Florida, said. “Floridians — we are the Sunshine State. We value sunshine.”
BREAKING: The House has passed legislation to make Daylight Saving Time permanent nationwide, ending the twice-a-year clock changes by a 308-117 vote. Backed by President Trump, the bill now heads to the Senate. If approved and signed into law, Americans would no longer have to… pic.twitter.com/6iy9O9ZWYf
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) July 14, 2026
Rep. Gus Bilirakis, a Republican from Florida, said the bill “is not about politics.”
“This is about practicality. It is about recognizing that our laws should keep pace with the people we represent,” he added.
The bill heads for the Senate, where it faces opposition from Republican Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas, who has said the bill would “push winter sunrises to an absurdly late hour” and that “kids would either walk to school in the pitch black or schools would have to push back start times,” according to The Hill.
But Republican Sen. Rick Scott of Florida was upbeat about the prospect of ending the ritual of adjusting clocks twice a year.
“I’m glad President Trump is making this a priority,” he said. “We have the momentum, now it’s time to lock the clock.”
Politico reported that a Senate GOP aide said Senate Majority Leader John Thune is unlikely to push the bill over Cotton’s objections.
Democratic Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon of Pennsylvania noted that past experiments have not worked.
“Permanent daylight savings time was repealed within a year because it didn’t work,” she said, according to CBS News.
“We all enjoy the extra hour or so of sunlight in the summer, but when people are considering this, they need to consider the extra hours of darkness in the winter,” she said.
It’s about time. Proud to vote YES to make Daylight Saving Time permanent and end the outdated twice-a-year clock change. pic.twitter.com/wglPsSUaYI
— Rep. Mike Rulli (@RepMichaelRulli) July 14, 2026
As noted by NBC News, a Nixon-era bill to make Daylight Saving Time permanent for two years was revoked after one year due to objections over morning darkness.
President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social in May after the Sunshine Protection Act cleared committee to say that he was all in.
“This is so important in that Hundreds of Millions of Dollars are spent every year by people, Cities, and States, being forced to change their Clocks. Many of these Clocks are located in Towers, and the cost of renting, or using, Heavy Equipment to do this twice a year is prohibitive!” Trump posted.
“I am going to work very hard to see The Sunshine Protection Act signed into Law. It’s time that people can stop worrying about the ‘Clock,’ not to mention all of the work and money that is spent on this ridiculous, twice yearly production,” he added.
Trump said the bill would give Americans “a longer, brighter Day — And who can be against that.”
Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. Advertise Today.
Truth and Accuracy
We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.
