Let There Be Light; November Proposition to End Standard Time

Spring forward or fall back, one California assemblyman is trying to lose that and make Daylight Saving Time the standard for the state through proposition seven that is set to appear on the November ballot.

The representative for the 25 district of California, Kansen Chu is in support of eliminating the practice of switching the clocks twice a year.

The C.E.O. for the Boys and Girls Club of Coachella Valley, Quinton Egson, said he is in favor of keeping Daylight Saving Time permanently as it would allow them to do more evening programming.

"The more that I think about it is a win, win, all the way around for Boys and Girls Club if we’re able to do that," Egson said. "There’s only a certain amount of time that we could have the kids with daylight, so we have to try to put a lot of things in that small box, this would allows us to think outside the box and be creative and have our kids outside for longer."

Proposition seven will not automatically keep Daylight Saving Time if it passes, it would simply grant legislative authority to draft the change. But according to data from the New England Journal of Medicine car accidents spike after the spring time shift.

And unlike popular belief, the C.E.O. of the Greater Coachella Valley Chamber of Commerce, Joshua Bonner, said more light in he evening does not mean more sale for retailers in general.

Bonner said, "What few studies have done on it does not necessarily show a big shift in consumer behavior."

But he said the permanent Daylight Saving Time may have a positive effect on local tourism.

Bonner said, "People who are visiting a market and maybe aren’t as familiar with the area because it’s not their hometown are more likely to stay in market and out of their hotel rooms for longer periods of time if there’s more daylight."

If voters approve Proposition seven, the year-round Daylight Saving Time bill would require two-thirds majority by the legislature, approval by congress, plus the signatures of the governor and the president.