News | March 8th, 2018

Sunshine all the time

By: journeymagazine

By| Brianna Hicks

Florida is one step closer to officially becoming the sunshine state.

In the wake of influx pollen and seasonal allergies, Florida officials gave the green light for Florida to become a state that observes daylight saving time year-round.

The bill was passed on Tuesday, with a 33-2 vote and is on its way to Gov. Rick Scott desk to get the state, one-step closer to living up to the Sunshine state name.

Longtime Miami Fla. resident JJ Hughes does not agree with the change. Hughes said “I don’t think the time should be touched at all, leave the time how it originally was from the beginning before they started the daylight savings time. Everything in life has pros and cons, but I see neither in changing the time”.

According to Seize the daylight: The curious and contentious story of daylight saving time, Benjamin Franklin was the founder of daylight saving time. Franklin thought that that DSL would reduce the amount of energy being used because consumers could enjoy one more hour of natural lighting before needing to use artificial light.

LaTasha Starks says she does not think having year-round daylight saving time is a bad thing, but she also does not see the good in it. “I do not think it’s bad because it gets the kids home earlier, which is great. I know this is going to be a transition for my kids because they would have to adjust their body clocks. The government already has enough control of our everyday lives; they should not have the ability to tell us now what time it is.”

Time officially moves forward this Sunday. For some, this is a good thing because they get more outside time. For others, however, this just means they will lose an hour of sleep. Parents of toddlers across the country are dreading this moment because their children will now wake them up an extra hour earlier when they want to sleep in on weekends. Colleen Lalor says she is tired of the time changes. Lalor said my four-year-old now will see daylight earlier and I will no longer have the option to sleep in on weekends. I wish it just stops and flows like usual.”

Under the Sunshine Protection Act Florida will become the first state to practice year-round daylight saving. If Gov. Scott signs the bill, the final step would be for Congress to change the laws officially. The decision is scheduled to be complete in the next couple weeks.