Will daylight saving time become permanent in 2026? What to know

It's officially August, which means the end of daylight saving time is just a few months away, when clocks will fall back one hour.

The House voted July 14 to make daylight saving time permanent through the Sunshine Protection Act. The legislation now heads to the Senate, where lawmakers have raised significant concerns about the proposal.

Several senators and policy experts have raised concerns that permanent daylight saving time could mean darker winter mornings, especially in northern states. Critics say the change could leave many children heading to school before sunrise during the winter months, reported USA TODAY.

Here's what to know about daylight saving time and if it will become permanent.

Daylight saving time ends at 2 a.m. local time on Sunday, Nov. 1, when clocks move back one hour to 1 a.m.

The shift marks the return to standard time and gives Americans an extra hour of sleep, while also bringing earlier sunsets and more morning daylight through the winter months.

While the bill to make daylight saving time permanent through the Sunshine Protection Act passed the House, it would still need the approval of the Senate.

Unless that happens, Americans will still need to change their clocks come November.

President Donald Trump has personally called on politicians to support passing the Sunshine Protection Act, saying "Hopefully the Senate's going to approve that one."

Daylight saving time is the practice of setting clocks forward an hour from March until November in an effort to gain more sunlight during the summer months.

According to the Library of Congress, it was first enacted in 1918 as a fuel cost-saving measure during World War I.

Daylight saving time became federal law under the Uniform Time Act of 1966.

Under the law, some states can opt to exempt itself from daylight saving time. Daylight saving time is not observed in Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and most of Arizona, according to the Department of Transportation.

USA TODAY contributed to this story.

Natassia Paloma may be reached at [email protected], @NatassiaPaloma on X, natassia_paloma on Instagram, and Natassia Paloma on Facebook.

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This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Will daylight saving time become permanent in 2026? What to know