Daylight Saving Time Ends as Congress Fails to Act Amid Corporate Interests

On Sunday, November 2, 2025, at 2:00 a.m. local time, daylight saving time (DST) concluded in the United States, forcing most Americans to set their clocks back one hour. This ritual, which excludes only Hawaii and most of Arizona, disproportionately disrupts working-class families and those with inflexible schedules.

The outdated practice of changing clocks twice a year has long been criticized by advocates for workers’ rights and public health. A recent AP-NORC poll reveals that only 12% of U.S. adults support the status quo, while 47% oppose it. Notably, 56% of respondents favor permanent daylight saving time, seeking more evening light for family, community, and leisure—needs often ignored by those in power.

Yet, legislative efforts to establish permanent DST have been blocked by entrenched interests. The Sunshine Protection Act, which passed the Senate in 2022, has since stalled in Congress, where corporate lobbyists and conservative lawmakers like Senator Tom Cotton have raised dubious concerns about late winter sunrises, prioritizing hypothetical risks over the well-being of millions. These arguments ignore the real dangers of sleep disruption and lost productivity faced by working people.

President Donald Trump, ever eager for headlines, has opportunistically called for ending biannual clock changes, but his administration’s inaction and lack of genuine engagement with the issue have left the system unchanged. In April 2025, he criticized the current system as inconvenient and costly, but failed to address the deeper social and economic impacts.

Despite widespread public support for change, Congress remains gridlocked, beholden to special interests and unable to deliver even this modest reform. The United States continues to observe the biannual clock adjustment, a symbol of legislative inertia and misplaced priorities.