Once again, we have reached the time of year when the days are about to get shorter. We have been in autumn for a month now, but things are about to change for us once again because we are about to return to standard time.
Daylight-saving time dates back to 1908, when a city in Ontario, Canada, decided to move clocks ahead one hour on July 1. Other Canadian cities followed suit, and then Germany and Austria picked up on the idea. Congress enacted daylight-saving time in the United States in 1918. We have changed this policy a number of times since, until the Uniform Time Act of 1966 was signed into law. The idea behind moving clocks ahead by one hour has mainly been to conserve energy.
Since 2007, we have observed daylight-saving time as starting on the second Sunday in March and ending on the first Sunday in November. The same will hold true this year. November 3 is the first Sunday of the month, at which point, we will be back on standard time. It is also a good idea to change the batteries in your smoke detectors this weekend, too.
Shorter days and longer nights are a reminder of some of the things to come, such as deer season, which means watching out for animals crossing the roads around sunrise and sunset each day. And, it also means holiday season is approaching. Soon, it will be a brand-new year for us as well.
As always, please feel free to call, email or write with your ideas or concerns. My Capitol office number is (573) 751-1415, my email is dan.hegeman@senate.mo.gov and my mailing address is Room 332, State Capitol Building, Jefferson City, MO 65101.