It’s time to change the clocks; Daylight Saving Time begins Sunday, March 14
Daylight Saving Time starts this weekend, so before you go to bed tonight, don’t forget to move your clock forward one hour. At 2 a.m. Sunday, March 14, the time will change to 3 a.m.
Most cell phone and computer clocks, as well as clocks that are connected to the internet or wifi network, will automatically update to the Daylight Saving Time. But, most analog clocks and digital clocks that aren’t connected to the internet/wifi will need to be changed manually.
According to the National Institute of Standards and Technology, DST was formally introduced in the United States in 1918. Today, most of the country and its territories observe DST. However, DST is not observed in Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and the state of Arizona (with the exception of the Navajo Nation, which does observe DST).
Time zones were introduced by the major railroad companies in 1883 to resolve confusion and avoid train crashes caused by different local times, according to the U.S. Bureau of Transportation. As the United States entered World War I in 1918, the government delegated time zone supervision to the federal organization in charge of railroad regulation — the Interstate Commerce Commission. The new concept of DST was also overseen by the ICC to assist in the war effort. Initially introduced by Germany during the war to conserve fuel and power by extending daylight hours, the United States soon followed suit.
The U.S. adopted Daylight Saving Time toward the end of World War I and then again during World War II, but between 1945 and 1966, there was no federal law regulating it. That led to confusion between states, and in 1966 Congress passed the Uniform Time Act to establish uniform dates for observing Daylight Saving Time, as is explained in an article on the U.S. Department of Energy website.
The Energy Policy Act of 2005 implemented new rules effective in 2007 to save energy by beginning DST on the second Sunday of March (March 14 in 2021) and returning to Standard Time on the first Sunday in November (November 7 in 2021), increasing the period of Daylight Saving Time by four weeks most years.
To check the official U.S. time, go to time.gov, a page maintained by the NIST.
The beginning and end of Daylight Saving Time each year is also used as a reminder for many people to check the batteries in their smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors and weather radios.
