![\"Dave](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/6aaa0b33-2f33-4e53-8a26-5150f09b3f05_1734039656.jpg\")
<\/a>LEE COUNTY, Fla. \u2014<\/p>\nA bill to make daylight saving time permanent is moving forward in Washington, sparking debate over its potential benefits and risks. <\/p>\n
In Florida, permanent daylight saving time would mean more evening daylight during winter, with sunsets at 6:30 p.m. instead of 5:30 p.m. However, mornings would remain darker, with the sun rising as late as 8 a.m., which has raised safety concerns. <\/p>\n
“I stood out on the bus stop at 5 a.m. It was super dark,” said Courtney Franks of Fort Myers. <\/p>\n
Franks expressed concern about the potential dangers for younger children waiting in the dark. <\/p>\n
In 1974, eight Florida children were killed in early morning traffic accidents after year-round daylight saving time was implemented, leading to its repeal. <\/p>\n
“They’re going to be driving, and already they’re going to be challenged because they can’t see as well because it’s dark, and cognitively they’re not going to be as aware, be able to function as well,” said Dr. Todd McElroy, a psychology professor at Florida Gulf Coast University. <\/p>\n
McElroy also warned about the health effects of daylight saving time. “We see a spike in cardiovascular disease, such as heart attacks and strokes,” he said. <\/p>\n
For some, the time change is more of an inconvenience. “I think for most of us it’s just a hassle just trying to get used to the change,” said Bill Pearce of Fort Myers. <\/p>\n
Florida passed a state law in 2018 to make daylight saving time permanent, but it required congressional approval. On Tuesday, Congress approved the measure, and U.S. Sen. Rick Scott expressed optimism about its progress. <\/p>\n
“I’m optimistic that the Senate will take up this bill quickly,” Scott said. <\/p>\n
If signed into law, the change could bring benefits for outdoor activities. <\/p>\n
“Permanently, that would mean we could have more time on the water,” said Elizabeth Reynolds, an instructor at the Edison Sailing Center. “With schools getting out at such late times, it makes it really hard for our kids to come practice after school.” <\/p>\n
Reynolds added, “Because I would have extra time to play sports.” <\/p>\n
While the change may be welcomed in Florida, it could pose challenges for those in northern states, where winter mornings are already darker. <\/p>\n
For now, the question remains whether clocks will turn back this November. The answer, for now, is yes, as the bill still requires Senate approval and the president’s signature.<\/p>\n
DOWNLOAD\u202fthe free\u202fGulf Coast News app<\/a>\u202ffor your latest news and alerts on breaking news, weather, sports, entertainment, and more on your phone or tablet. And check out the Very Local Gulf Coast app<\/a> to stream news, entertainment, and original programming on your TV.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Congress advances permanent daylight saving time bill, but some in Florida warn of risks LEE COUNTY, Fla. \u2014…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":341698,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[530,140323,5142,12200,140319,28,9149,30,29,897,140320,140317,15849,123480,140321,16335,140318,123479,121031,6413,88176,140322],"class_list":["post-341697","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-florida","tag-bus-stop","tag-clocks-turn-back","tag-congress","tag-daylight-saving-time","tag-edison-sailing-center","tag-florida","tag-florida-gulf-coast-university","tag-florida-headlines","tag-florida-news","tag-fort-myers","tag-heart-attacks","tag-permanent-daylight-saving-time","tag-school-safety","tag-streams","tag-strokes","tag-traffic-accidents","tag-u-s-sen-rick-scott","tag-us-privacy-notice-term","tag-use-nextfre","tag-washington","tag-wbbh","tag-winter-mornings"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/341697","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=341697"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/341697\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/341698"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=341697"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=341697"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=341697"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}