A bill that would have Texas opt out of Daylight Savings Time (DST) will have a hearing in the Government Transparency and Operation Committee on Wednesday. If the bill is enacted into law, it will take effect on September 1, 2015 unless it receives a two-thirds majority. If this happens the law would take effect immediately upon being signed by Governor Greg Abbott.
The bill (HB 150 attached below) is authored by State Representatives Dan Flynn (R-Canton), Allen Fletcher (R-Cypress), Jason Isaac (R-Dripping Springs) and Richard Peña Raymond (D-Laredo). The intent of the bill is to exempt Texas from Daylight Savings Time both in the Central Time Zone, which covers most of Texas, and the Mountain Time Zone, which covers a small piece of Texas surrounding El Paso.
The House Committee on Government Transparency and Operations will hear discussion on the bill on Wednesday, March 11. The committee will hear testimony from the public and from legislators laying out the bill. Those who are unable to attend the hearing but wish to be informed may watch the hearing via the House of Representatives Live-Streaming page. The hearing will be held in room E1.014 in the Capitol Extension. It will begin at 2:00 p.m. Central Daylight Time. The committee is chaired by Rep. Gary Elkins (R-Houston). The bill is currently scheduled to be the first item on the agenda.
A Facebook page named “Texas Daylight Savings Time 100% or End It – Stop the Changes” has been established by supporters of the bill. Comments on the page overwhelmingly support stopping the Spring Forward – Fall Back actions of our current time system. The supporters seem split; however, on whether Texas should remain on Daylight Savings Time year round or it should simply stay on standard time.
Martha Sanderson wrote, “Don’t stop Daylight Savings Time. Leave it all year round. Light at the end of the day encourages more outside play and exercise. We all could benefit from that. Just sitting on the porch in the evening is nice.” Mary Jaresh Grantham takes a different viewpoint by writing, “End it! It saves NOTHING but actually costs more. AZ has the right idea!”
Bob Price is a senior political news contributor for Breitbart Texas and a member of the original Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX and on Facebook.
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