SALT LAKE CITY — Rep. Fred Cox, R-West Valley City, says he wants that would fix the clocks in Utah.
He’s sponsoring HB65 which would get rid of the government mandated daylight savings in Utah, joining Arizona as a state that doesn’t have to “spring forward” each spring, or “fall back” in the fall. The bill is scheduled for a committee hearing Tuesday, Feb. 9.
The decision to sponsor the bill came from Cox’s constituents. “I started asking constituents what they thought.” For the third year in a row, Cox said that nearly 60 percent of his constituents were in favor of the bill, 20 percent of whom were really excited of the prospect of having Mountain Standard Time year-round.
“We have lots of kids in Utah, the morning hours in fall and spring are darker, and parents are worried about their children’s safety,” he said.
Cox said that the bill is different from previous iterations of the bill because it would still give airlines and other businesses time to adjust. The change would not take place until 2017.
Many people are in favor of the bill, especially parents with young or special needs children, who need special supervision during the darker hours of the day. However, there are also many dissidents.
“I get calls saying, ‘You can count on not having a yard sign this year if you do this,'” he said.
Cox said a few of his constituents were unhappy at the prospective change, including golfers and a few business owners. However, he indicated that the bill wasn’t likely to affect their games and profits overall.
“Every year, someone will bring it back, if it doesn’t pass this year, it will likely show up again next year,” he said.
Posted Feb. 9, 2016
