BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó




           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 
          |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE            |                        AJR 28|
          |Office of Senate Floor Analyses   |                              |
          |(916) 651-1520    Fax: (916)      |                              |
          |327-4478                          |                              |
           ----------------------------------------------------------------- 


                                   THIRD READING 


          Bill No:  AJR 28
          Author:   Obernolte (R), et al.
          Amended:  5/27/16 in Senate
          Vote:     21 

           SENATE ENERGY, U. & C. COMMITTEE:  9-0, 6/13/16
           AYES:  Hueso, Morrell, Cannella, Gaines, Hertzberg, Hill, Lara,  
            Leyva, McGuire
           NO VOTE RECORDED:  Pavley, Wolk

           ASSEMBLY FLOOR:  69-2, 5/5/16 - See last page for vote

           SUBJECT:   Daylight saving time


           SOURCE:    Author

          DIGEST:   This resolution urges the Congress of the United  
          States and the President of the United States to enact  
          legislation that would allow a state to adopt daylight saving  
          time (DST) year round.

          ANALYSIS:  Existing federal law establishes the standard time of  
          the United States for each of nine zones and advances the  
          standard time of each zone by one hour during the period  
          commencing at 2:00 a.m. on the second Sunday of March of each  
          year and ending at 2:00 a.m. on the first Sunday of November of  
          each year.

          Existing state law, under the Daylight Saving Time Act:

          1)Provides that the standard time within California is that  
            which is known, described, and designated by federal law as  
            United States Standard Pacific Time.









                                                                     AJR 28 
                                                                    Page  2



          2)Requires, from 1:00 a.m. on the last Sunday of April, until  
            2:00 a.m. on the last Sunday of October, the standard time  
            within the state to be one hour in advance of United States  
            Standard Pacific Time.

          This resolution urges the Congress of the United States and the  
          President of the United States to enact legislation that would  
          allow a state to adopt DST year round considering that the  
          Uniform Time Act (1966) allows states to choose to remain on  
          standard time, but does not provide the states the option to  
          stay on DST.

          Background

          Benjamin Franklin (1784) is credited with the basic idea of DST  
          after observing that people were sleeping during sunlit hours in  
          the early morning and burning candles for illumination in the  
          evening.  However, DST didn't "officially" begin in the U.S.  
          until World War I (1918), when it was enacted primarily to  
          extend the length of the production day and save fuel by  
          reducing the need to use artificial lighting. 

          Although some states and communities observed DST after the war  
          ended, DST wasn't officially observed nationally again until  
          1942, when it was re-enacted for World War II, then repealed  
          after the war in 1945. 

          From 1945 to 1966, there was no federal law regarding DST, so  
          states and localities were free to choose whether to observe DST  
          and could choose when it began and ended.  This understandably  
          caused confusion, especially for the broadcasting industry, as  
          well as for railways, airlines, and bus companies. ["Daylight  
          Savings Time". WebExhibits. http://www.webexhibits.org/  
          daylightsaving/e.html]

          The Daylight Saving Time Act.  California voters passed  
          Proposition 12 in 1949, approving DST in the state and that the  
          standard time within the state is that which is known,  
          described, and designated by federal law as United States  
          Standard Pacific Time.

          The Uniform Time Act of 1966.  This federal act established a  








                                                                     AJR 28  
                                                                    Page  3



          standardized system of operating DST throughout the U.S. and its  
          territories, exempting only states and territories that enacted  
          laws to keep their entire state or territory on standard time.  
          Most states opted for a coordinated DST.  However, the Uniform  
          Time Act allows states to choose to remain only on standard time  
          as an alternative but does not provide states the option to  
          remain on DST.

          In 1972, Congress revised the law to provide that, if a state  
          was in two or more time zones, the state could exempt the part  
          of the state that was in one time zone while providing that the  
          part of the state in a different time zone would observe DST.   
          The federal law was amended in 1986 to begin DST on the first  
          Sunday in April.

          Energy Policy Act of 2005.  This federal act extended DST in the  
          U.S. by three weeks in the spring and one week in the fall,  
          beginning on March 11, 2007, in the hope that the extension  
          would save energy. Since then, California has begun DST at 2:00  
          a.m. on the second Sunday of March and ended at 2:00 a.m. on the  
          first Sunday of November.  Should Congress enact legislation  
          that allows a state to adopt DST year round, the change would  
          have to be approved by California voters.

          Findings:

           Today, the Uniform Time Act provides that either Congress or  
            the Secretary of Transportation can change a time-zone  
            boundary. [U.S. Department of Transportation] 

           DST is currently practiced in 76 countries and directly  
            affects more than 1.6 billion people worldwide. [Matthew J.  
            Kotchen and Laura E. Grant, "Does Daylight Saving Time Save  
            Energy? Evidence form a Natural Experiment in Indiana". The  
            National Bureau of Economic Research. http://www.nber.org/  
            papers/w14429]

           States and territories in the United States that do not  
            observe DST include: most of Arizona, Hawaii, American Samoa,  
            Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. 

           Some parts of Indiana did not observe DST in the past.








                                                                     AJR 28  
                                                                    Page  4




           A national telephone survey of 1,000 adults conducted March  
            5-6, 2014, by Rasmussen Reports, concluded that only 33  
            percent of American adults think DST is worth the hassle.  48  
            percent do not think the clock changing ritual is worth it,  
            but 19 percent are not sure. 

          Estimates of DST effects.  The California Energy Commission  
          (CEC) conducted a research on DST, which it published in 2007,  
          that examined whether and how much the Policy Act of 2005  
          changed daily electricity.  The extension of DST to March 2007  
          had little or no effect on energy consumption in California,  
          according to CEC.  The most likely approximation is a 0.2  
          percent decrease during these three weeks.

          In 2008, a study was published by the National Bureau of  
          Economic Research, who studied energy use in Indiana.  The  
          experiment in the State of Indiana provided the first empirical  
          estimates of DST effects on electricity consumption in the  
          United States since the mid-1970s focusing on residential  
          electricity demand.  The main finding, contrary to the policy's  
          intent:  DST increases residential electricity demand.  An  
          estimate of the overall increase is approximately one percent.   
          DST causes the greatest increase in electricity consumption in  
          the fall, when estimates range between two and four percent.

          Potential cost in California.  According to a 2008 study by the  
          National Bureau of Economic Research, Indiana households pay an  
          additional $9 million per year in energy bills.  Also, the study  
          estimated a social cost of increased pollution emissions that  
          range from $1.7 million to $5.5 million per year.  The study  
          concluded that the effect is likely to be even stronger in other  
          regions of the United States.

          Another Step Away From Uniformity.  The purpose of the Uniform  
          Time Act of 1966 was to put states on a relatively uniform time  
          schedule within their specific times zones.  Granted, the fact  
          that Hawaii, most of Arizona, and the eastern portion of Indiana  
          have exercised the option under the Uniform Time Act not to move  
          to DST during the summer means that states already aren't  
          operating on a uniform time system.  However, this proposal, if  
          enacted by the federal government, gives states the option to  








                                                                     AJR 28  
                                                                    Page  5



          move even further away from the notion of a uniform time system  
          by going to DST on a year-round basis.

          Intended benefits.  Reports indicate that in regions with a  
          temperate climate, DST results in energy savings and year-round  
          DST could increase these savings as well as industrial  
          efficiency.  Additionally, extra daylight in the evening hours  
          could provide a boost to the tourism and shopping industries.  
          [American College of Cardiology. "Daylight saving impacts timing  
          of heart attacks." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 29 March 2014.  
          www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/ 03/ 140329175108.htm]

          According to the U.S. National Library of Medicine National  
          Institutes of Health, studies have connected DST with a  
          reduction in pedestrian and driver fatalities, as well as a  
          decrease in robberies.

          Unintended consequences.  Seniors may be among the most affected  
          by DST since it can result in confusion for seniors who forget  
          about time change.  Also giving up an hour of sleep can have  
          more impact on one's physical condition, regardless of age.

          According to research presented at the American College of  
          Cardiology's 63rd Annual Scientific Session it seems moving the  
          clock forward or backward may alter the timing of when heart  
          attacks occur in the week following these time changes. 

          Final thoughts.  Studies have shown ongoing debate about whether  
          DST is needed anymore.  Widely implemented during World War I,  
          it was primarily adopted to save energy.  Some experts question  
          whether it saves energy and if it has negative health effects  
          beyond just leaving people feeling groggy and out of sorts.  
          [American College of Cardiology. "Daylight saving impacts timing  
          of heart attacks." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 29 March 2014.  
          www.sciencedaily.com/ releases/2014/03/140329175108.htm]

          Comments

          According to the author:

            Switching our clocks to observe daylight saving time twice a  
            year is an outdated practice that is hazardous to our health  








                                                                     AJR 28  
                                                                    Page  6



            and well-being and it is time to end it. While opting to stay  
            on standard time year round is one solution to this problem,  
            there are number of advantages to staying on permanent  
            daylight saving time that make it a more attractive option.   
            Permanent daylight saving time would result in a reduction in  
            traffic accidents and robberies, offer net energy savings and  
            could potentially provide a great boost to the tourism  
            industry and local businesses. Ultimately, it should be up to  
            the voters to decide whether or not to observe permanent  
            daylight saving time.  However, under federal law, states only  
            have the option of opting for standard time.  ACR 28 would  
            urge Congress to enact legislation to allow states to observe  
            daylight saving time permanently and give the voters the power  
            to decide.

          Related/Prior Legislation
          
          AB 2496 (Chu, 2016) declares the intent of the Legislature to  
          enact legislation to establish United States Standard Pacific  
          Time as the standard time within the state during the entire  
          year.  The bill is pending referral at the Assembly desk.

          AB 385 (Chu, 2015) repeals the Daylight Saving Time Act, and  
          requires the standard time within the state to be designated by  
          federal law as Pacific standard time.  The bill is pending in  
          the Senate Committee on Appropriations.

          SJRX2 1 (Karnette, Resolution Chapter 1, Statutes of 2001-02  
          Second Extraordinary Session) memorialized the Congress to  
          approve legislation that allows a state to uniformly apply DST  
          year round.

          AJR 56 (Longville, Chapter 127, Statutes of 2000) memorialized  
          the President and the Congress to enact legislation to allow  
          states the opportunity to choose year-round DST, in addition to  
          standard time or the current system of "traditional" DST.  


          FISCAL EFFECT:    Appropriation:     No         Fiscal  
          Com.:NoLocal:     No

          SUPPORT:   (Verified  6/14/16)








                                                                     AJR 28  
                                                                    Page  7





          None received


          OPPOSITION:  (Verified  6/14/16)


          None received
          
          
          ASSEMBLY FLOOR:  69-2, 5/5/16
          AYES:  Achadjian, Alejo, Arambula, Atkins, Baker, Bigelow,  
            Bloom, Bonta, Brown, Burke, Campos, Chang, Chau, Chávez, Chiu,  
            Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd, Eggman,  
            Frazier, Gallagher, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto,  
            Gipson, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger  
            Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey,  
            Levine, Linder, Lopez, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina,  
            Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen,  
            Quirk, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago, Steinorth,  
            Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood,  
            Rendon
          NOES:  Brough, Wagner
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Travis Allen, Bonilla, Calderon, Beth Gaines,  
            Gomez, Low, Maienschein, Patterson, Waldron

          Prepared by:Jay Dickenson/Genesis Tang / E., U., & C. / (916)  
          651-4107
          8/15/16 10:17:15


                                   ****  END  ****