Daylight Saving Time Bill To Be Considered by Wyoming Lawmakers

A bill that could eventually lead to Wyoming staying on daylight saving time all year has been filed for consideration in the 2019 session of the Wyoming Legislature

House Bill 14 has been filed by Park County Republican Representative Dan Laursen. It would mandate that if at least three states around Wyoming were to decide to go to mountain daylight saving time year-round, Wyoming would ask the U.S. Secretary of Transportation for permission to eliminate the annual time changes and remain on daylight saving time year-round.

Several bills to eliminate the annual time changes in Wyoming have failed in past sessions of the Wyoming legislature. Supporters of such legislation say the time changes disrupt people's sleep patterns and lead to increased accidents for no valid reason. Opponents say the time changes are a tradition that people have gotten used to and that they ''help farmers."

Opponents in floor debate on similar bills in past sessions of the legislature have also argued that by being on a different schedule for part of the year with surrounding states, Wyoming businesses would be inconvenienced when doing business in contiguous states.

The 2019 session of the state legislature is slated to convene on Jan.7 in Cheyenne. The upcoming session is a two-month general session, which means non-budget bills will take center stage.