Looking forward to getting an extra hour of sleep?

For many Americans, this will become a reality soon, as daylight saving time wraps up for the year. This biannual adjustment to clocks provides longer evenings of daylight in spring and summer, as well as additional morning light duringfall and winter months, starting in March and concluding in November.

The change of one hour can lead to confusion and disrupt sleep patterns, prompting discussions in Congress about possibly abolishing this tradition.

However, for now, daylight saving time is still observed by most Americans, although not all. Here’s what you need to know as this period comes to a close this year.

When does daylight saving time end in 2024?

Daylight saving time will conclude for the year at 2 a.m. local time on Sunday, November 3, when clocks are set back an hour, allowing us an extra hour of sleep.

The next cycle will begin on Sunday, March 9, 2025.

What is daylight saving time?

Daylight saving time refers to the period between March and November, when many Americans move their clocks forward by one hour.

In November, we gain an hour compared to spring’s loss of an hour, which provides more daylight during winter mornings. When we “spring forward” in March, it allows for extended evening daylight. In the Northern Hemisphere, the fall season starts with the autumn equinox on Sunday, September 22.

When did daylight saving time start in 2024?

In 2024, daylight saving time commenced on Sunday, March 10 at 2 a.m. local time, when clocks were advanced by one hour, part of the routine biannual clock adjustment affecting most, but not all, Americans.

Is daylight saving time coming to an end?

In recent years, efforts to end the clock adjustments have been discussed in Congress. The U.S. Senate voted unanimously to approve the Sunshine Protection Act in 2022, aiming to make daylight saving time permanent.

Despite the unanimous Senate approval in 2022, the bill did not pass in the U.S. House of Representatives and was not signed into law by President Joe Biden.

A revised version of the act from 2023 has also not gained traction in Congress.

Do all states observe daylight saving time?

Not every state or U.S. territory observes daylight saving time.

Hawaii and most of Arizona are exempt from this practice. Arizona, due to its desert climate, chose not to follow daylight saving time (except for the Navajo Nation). After the implementation of the Uniform Time Act by most of the U.S., Arizona concluded there was no logical reason to change the clocks to have later sunsets during the warmest months.

In addition, five other U.S. territories do not participate:

• American Samoa
• Guam
• Northern Mariana Islands
• Puerto Rico
• U.S. Virgin Islands

The Navajo Nation, which spreads across parts of Arizona, Utah, and New Mexico, does observe daylight saving time.

Hawaii, located close to the equator, is the other state that refrains from observing daylight saving time as daylight hours do not significantly fluctuate throughout the year.