NC lawmakers try again to ditch time change

House Bill 307 would create a "North Carolina Time Zone" that would keep the state on "spring forward" time all year, doing away with "falling back" to Eastern Standard Time each November if the federal government authorizes states to do so. Fifteen other states have passed similar bills, including many in the Southeast.

"It's probably one of the most popular bills I've ever filed," Saine told the House State and Local Government committee.

"Whether it's Standard Time or Daylight Saving Time, I'm indifferent. We had to pick one, so we picked one," he said. "I think the thing that most people hate – they spend two months out of the year trying to readjust their internal clock."

"All we're really asking for is to tell Congress that they really need to do something about it," he added.

Supporters of the idea say it lowers energy consumption and reduces car accidents. But critics point out that most people would be headed to work or school in complete darkness over the winter without the time change.

It's been tried before, most recently in 1974 during the national energy crisis. Then-President Richard Nixon ordered the nation to observe Daylight Saving Time for the entire year. In some towns on the western edge of time zones, the sun didn't rise in the winter till 8:30 a.m. That led to problems for children waiting for school buses, and the change was reversed before the year was out.

States do have the authority to opt out of Daylight Saving Time – Hawaii and Arizona don't observe it at all – but it does complicate relationships with surrounding states that do change their clocks.

Saine said he hopes Congress will pass a law allowing states to choose to stay on Daylight Saving Time instead.