Twice each year, Oregonians take part in a familiar ritual. Phones and computers usually handle the change quietly, while oven clocks, dashboards and bedside alarms remain an hour off until someone finally gets around to fixing them.
Congress has once again moved toward ending that routine, but most of Oregon’s representatives in the U.S. House were not willing to support the proposed solution.
On Tuesday, July 14, the House passed the Sunshine Protection Act of 2025 by a bipartisan vote of 308 to 117. The bill, introduced by Republican Florida Rep. Vern Buchanan, would eliminate the spring and fall clock changes by making daylight saving time permanent across most of the country.
Four of Oregon’s six House members voted against the proposal.
Democratic Reps. Suzanne Bonamici, Janelle Bynum, Val Hoyle and Andrea Salinas all voted no. Republican Rep. Cliff Bentz supported the bill, while Democratic Rep. Maxine Dexter did not cast a vote.
The result may seem surprising in a state that has spent years trying to escape the twice-a-year clock change. The disagreement, however, is not necessarily about whether Oregonians should continue springing forward and falling back. Much of the debate centers on which time Oregon should keep.
Permanent daylight saving time would preserve later sunsets throughout the winter. It would also move sunrise one hour later, creating darker mornings during the shortest days of the year.
That tradeoff is especially noticeable in northern states like Oregon, where winter daylight is already limited. More evening light could benefit restaurants, outdoor recreation, youth sports and people hoping to squeeze in a walk after work. On the other hand, later winter sunrises would mean more children waiting for school buses and more commuters beginning their days before sunrise.
The House bill would make daylight saving time the country’s permanent default. Places that had already exempted themselves from daylight saving time before the law took effect, including Hawaii and most of Arizona, could continue operating under their existing systems. The measure must still pass the Senate before it can be sent to President Donald Trump, who has publicly supported ending the twice-yearly clock change and keeping daylight saving time year-round.
For now, nothing has changed for Oregon residents. Unless the Senate approves the legislation and it is signed into law, clocks will continue moving forward in March and backward in November.
Oregon Has Been Wrestling With This For Years
Oregon lawmakers have already tried several approaches to locking the clock.
In 2019, the Oregon Legislature approved Senate Bill 320, which became Oregon Laws 2019, Chapter 421. The law calls for the portion of Oregon in the Pacific Time Zone to remain on daylight saving time throughout the year.
There were several catches.
The change could only take effect after California and Washington adopted the same year-round schedule. Permanent daylight saving time also required federal approval because current federal law allows states to opt out of daylight saving time, but does not ordinarily allow them to observe it throughout the year.
Oregon’s 2019 law is scheduled to be repealed if those conditions have not been met by December 1, 2029. Most of Malheur County, which follows Mountain Time rather than Pacific Time, would not be included in the change.
California voters gave their Legislature authority to reconsider the state’s time system in 2018, but California lawmakers have not completed a move to permanent daylight saving time. Washington approved its own conditional legislation, but it has also remained unable to put the change into effect without federal action.
By 2024, some Oregon lawmakers were exploring the opposite approach.
Senate Bill 1548 proposed keeping the Pacific Time Zone portion of Oregon on standard time for all 12 months of the year, provided California and Washington made the same move within 10 years. Unlike permanent daylight saving time, states are already permitted under federal law to remain on standard time throughout the year.
The measure advanced to the Oregon House but remained in committee when the short legislative session ended.
Most People Want To Stop Switching, But Agreement Ends There
The clock debate has created an unusual situation in which many people agree on the problem but remain divided over the answer.
Supporters of permanent daylight saving time point to brighter winter evenings, more time for outdoor activities and possible benefits for restaurants, recreation businesses and tourism. During debate on the House floor, supporters also argued that predictable schedules would be easier for families and businesses.
Many physicians and sleep researchers favor permanent standard time instead.
The American Medical Association and the American Academy of Sleep Medicine have supported ending seasonal clock changes while maintaining standard time throughout the year. Their position is based largely on the importance of morning light in regulating sleep and the body’s natural circadian rhythm.
A 2025 Stanford Medicine study modeled the potential long-term health effects of different time policies. Researchers predicted that either permanent system could be healthier than switching clocks twice a year, but permanent standard time produced the greater estimated reductions in obesity and stroke. The researchers also cautioned that real-world factors such as weather, geography and personal behavior were not fully captured by the model.
That leaves Oregon in a familiar position.
The state has a law pointing toward permanent daylight saving time, a more recent proposal that favored permanent standard time and a congressional delegation that mostly rejected the latest federal attempt to settle the question.
The Sunshine Protection Act has cleared the House, but the clocks are not locked just yet. Until the Senate and president act, Oregonians should plan on continuing the twice-yearly tradition of changing the microwave, checking the smoke alarms and wondering why the car clock is suddenly wrong again.
