US Senate calls time on Trump push to end US clock switching

Trump said that changing the clocks twice a year 'costs our country a fortune, is bad for crime, stress on people, sports, and just about everything else you can imagine'

US president Donald Trump speaks with reporters before boarding Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House this week. Picture: Jacquelyn Martin/AP

Efforts in the US Senate to mandate year-round daylight saving have stalled despite significant pressure from president Donald Trump.

Early on Friday, Trump again urged the Senate to approve the bill that passed the House in July by a 308-117 vote. 

The measure would end the twice-yearly practice of ​changing clocks observed across most of the nation since the 1960s.

Trump said in a social media post that changing the clocks twice a year "costs our country a fortune, is bad for crime, stress on people, sports, and just about everything else you can imagine".

The Senate wrapped up work this week until after the November 3 congressional election and has no votes scheduled before then. Standard time resumes in the US on November 1.

"It's dead as disco," Republican senator John Kennedy told Reuters earlier this week of the push to make daylight saving time permanent. 

"My sense is it would have trouble passing... I don't think the leader is going to bring it up."

Republican senator Rick Scott, a key sponsor, said he was still confident it could be approved when lawmakers return.

Critics note the change would mean the sun rises an hour later on winter mornings, leaving more children traveling to school and commuters, construction workers, farmers, and others heading to work before ​daylight.

 In some places, ​the sun would ⁠not rise until nearly 9am or later at the height of winter.

Supporters ​say changing the clocks disrupts sleep, increases workplace injuries, and contributes to more road accidents. 

They argue keeping ‌clocks ⁠an hour ahead year-round would provide more evening daylight and boost economic activity during the winter months.

If enacted, clocks would no longer return to standard time in 2027, although states could opt out of year-round daylight saving time if they do not ​currently observe it or voted to adopt permanent standard time before the law was changed.

The US used year-round daylight saving time during the Second World ​War and enacted it again in 1974 to reduce energy use. But it proved deeply unpopular and Congress repealed ​it later that year.

Ireland and the rest of the EU prepare to switch back to standard time on Sunday, October 25, when clocks will go back by one hour.

Reuters