Daylight Saving Time begins this Sunday, March 8, at 2 a.m. Clocks move forward one hour, and most people will lose one hour of sleep.
What’s Happening: At 2 a.m. Sunday, clocks jump to 3 a.m. Most smartphones and internet-connected devices update automatically.
What’s Important: Clocks that do not update on their own, such as car clocks, wall clocks, and some older appliances, will need to be set by hand. Sunrises and sunsets will both arrive one hour later.
How This Affects Real People: Anyone with an early Monday morning commitment should plan for the lost hour.
Catch Up Quick: Daylight Saving Time begins on the second Sunday in March each year and ends on the first Sunday in November, when clocks fall back one hour. Congress set that schedule through the Energy Policy Act of 2005. The practice dates to World War I, when the U.S. adopted it to conserve energy. You can read more about the history of the time change here.
The Path Forward: Several states have passed legislation to observe Daylight Saving Time permanently, but federal law currently only allows states to opt into permanent Standard Time. Any move to permanent Daylight Saving Time would require an act of Congress. Until then, the twice-yearly clock change remains in effect.
