Illinois Senate Passes Bill For Year-Round Daylight Saving Time

SPRINGFIELD, IL — A bill proposed by Sen. Andy Manar (D-Bunker Hill) that would make Daylight Saving Time permanent passed the state Senate Tuesday on a 44-2-2 vote, according to the Illinois General Assembly website. Senate Bill 533 will now go to the house for approval, where sponsors of the proposed legislation include Rep. Allen Skillicorn (R-Crystal Lake).

The bill was suggested to Manar by students from Carlinville High School as part of a class project.

According to several reports, changes at the federal level would have to take place in order for Daylight Saving Time to become the standard time year-round, or Congress would have to exempt Illinois from time changes, joining Arizona and Hawaii in opting out of Daylight Saving Time.

Skillicorn is the chief sponsor of a similar bill aimed at make Daylight Saving Time permanent in Illinois, and was introduced earlier this spring.

According to a news release from Skillicorn's team, one of the reasons he's sponsoring House Bill 3837 is due to recent news reports highlighting some of the health risks associated with moving clocks forward and backward each year. The legislation states that after 2 a.m. on the second Sunday of March 2020, clocks shall be moved forward one hour, and thereafter Daylight Saving Time would become the Standard Time in Illinois, according to the release. House Bill 3837 has been introduced but hasn't been assigned to a legislative committee, according to the release.