TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida’s U.S. senators are making a new push for year-round daylight-saving time, this time tied to the coronavirus pandemic.
Two years after backing a state legislative effort to put Florida on year-round daylight-saving time, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio and U.S. Sen. Rick Scott introduced a bill to skip the change to standard time this fall across the country.
The Republican senators said in a news release that the intent is to provide “one year of stability for families who are already dealing with enough change with virtual learning, work from home, and other disruptions the COVID-19 pandemic has placed into our daily lives.”
Scott, while serving as governor in 2018, signed legislation aimed at putting Florida on year-round daylight saving time. But the idea requires congressional approval and did not advance.
“After months of staying inside amid the coronavirus pandemic, families across the nation could use a little more sunshine and time to enjoy all that Florida has to offer,” Scott said in Wednesday’s news release.
To try to move the new proposal forward, Rubio plans to use a procedure that would skip the Senate Commerce Committee and place the measure on the Senate Calendar.
The idea of year-round daylight saving time has been promoted as a way to help Florida’s tourism industry, as people would be able to stay out later with the additional sunlight.
Daylight saving time this year ends Nov. 1 and restarts March 14, 2021.