FT: Daylight Savings Time Abolition Act

[rpryor03]

AN ACT
to recognize the absurdity
of arbitrarily renumbering
the hours twice a year

Section 1 (Title)
i. The long title of this Act shall be, the "Daylight Savings Time Abolition Act." It may be cited as "DASTA."

Section 2 (Time)
i. The Commonwealth of Fremont shall no longer recognize Daylight Savings Time in any States or other territories under its jurisdiction.

Section 3 (Implementation)
i. This legislation will take effect on January 1, 2018 at 12:00:00 AM (Eastern Standard Time).
[/quote]

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Cross-posted from the first thread:

As it says on the tin, this bill would abolish Daylight Savings Time in the Commonwealth of Fremont. I'm happy to wade into the weeds if anyone is really interested, but essentially, DST is a terrible idea. It doesn't help farmers (renumbering the hours does not effect the amount of daylight available for planting crops), nor does it have a significant effect on fuel consumption in the modern era. On the other hand, DST does move the sunrise an hour later every spring, forcing students getting ready for school to wait at the bus stop in the early-morning darkness (a circumstance that opens the door for tragic automobile accidents that were entirely preventable).

If you're wondering what effect this would have on the forum, the answer is: none whatsoever. Elections in Atlasia already operate as if DST does not exist, and there are no other aspects of the game that require everyone to be on the same clock.

Sounds good then. I have no issue with this. DLS isnt all that useful really. Just makes things more complicated than they need to be.

[Tirnam]

The DST allows to maximize the presence of the Sun with the human life.

Without the DST, on June 21st the sun would rise at 4.43am and set at 7.06pm in Los Angeles.
In Seattle the sun would rise at 4.12pm and set at 8.09pm.
Why should we waste 1 hour of the Sun's light in the morning (seriously who need the Sun at 4am?), an hour which could be used for a nice summer evening?

Yes, with the modern technologies (LED lamps, etc.) limit the beneficial impact of DST, but it still has an impact (in 2008, the Department of energy concluded that DST saved 0.5% of electricity usage). Maybe humans need a few days to adapt, but to avoid those few days we should accept the night at 7pm in the summer? Clearly not.

I oppose this bill.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Yes, with the modern technologies (LED lamps, etc.) limit the beneficial impact of DST, but it still has an impact (in 2008, the Department of energy concluded that DST saved 0.5% of electricity usage).

Actually, the study in question found DST was responsible for reducing annual energy consumption in Atlasia by approximately 0.33%, and those findings remain hotly contested. According to Forbes, "a 2014 study published in the Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, seemed to corroborate what a number of other studies have already found: Daylight Saving Time, or DST, might do precious little to save energy, and may even increase energy consumption on the whole." (Source)

The article continues:

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Similarly, 2014 study by the University of Colorado found that "recent research demonstrates that DST does not save energy and could possibly increase energy use." The same study found the late sunrise effected by DST responsible for a 6.3% increase in fatalities from automobile accidents, at a cost of as much as $3 billion annually. (Source) Also in 2014, Matthew Kotchen - the former Deputy Assistant Secretary for Environment and Energy - corroborated these findings in an article published by the New York Times. (Source)

According to Kotchen,

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In other words, DST is a particularly bad idea in areas where there is a significant need for air conditioning during the daylight hours, as is the case in the Southwest.

[Tirnam]

I recognize that the impact of DST is negligible, hard to determine in a positive or negative way.
Since that question can't be clearly solve the only question we can ask is: should we accept to live at bright light at 5am when 90% of the people are sleeping and in the dark at 8pm when 90% are awake? Why the human time should be different of the natural time?

Human are meant to live according to the Sun, Humans need the natural light of the Sun. Therefore we should adapt our time to follow at best the Sun.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Human are meant to live according to the Sun, Humans need the natural light of the Sun. Therefore we should adapt our time to follow at best the Sun.

This is an excellent argument for why Fremont should transition to a different time zone, and I would be willing to consider a bill making such a change if the honorable Member is inclined to offer it. DST, however, is a poor substitute for such a change and is, in fact, the opposite of the natural light cycle (that's kind of the point).

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Do our remaining Members have anything to add?

[ASPN]

I'm good, already said before I have no issue with getting rid of it.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Seeing no further debate, I move for a final vote on this bill.

[ASPN]

Seeing no further debate, I move for a final vote on this bill.

Aye

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Seeing no further debate, I move for a final vote on this bill.

Aye

We're not voting just yet - per the Standing Orders, I have to give 24 hours for objections first.

That said, thank you so much for your prompt and enthusiastic response!

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

Division! Members will vote Aye, Nay, or Abstain; voting will continue for 72 hours, or until all members have voted.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

AYE!

[RFayette]

Aye

[ASPN]

Aye

[Tirnam]

Nay

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

With three votes in favor, one opposed, and one Member not voting, this legislation has been ADOPTED.

[Unconditional Surrender Truman]

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