When is Daylight Saving Time in 2022?

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HINGHAM, MA - NOVEMBER 3: Brothers David G Hochstrasser, left, and Ross A. Hochstrasser look over clock hands and check on the new shafts at the New North Church in Hingham, MA.. (Photo by David L. Ryan/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

DETROIT (FOX 2) - It's getting darker and darker at night literally by the minute every day. And each morning, the sun comes up a minute later than the day before. Yes, it's that time of year. This means, once we get through Halloween, our annual time change is here.

Daylight Saving Time – also referred to as "daylight savings time," – begins the second Sunday of March and ends on the first Sunday in November.

This year, that date is Sunday, November 6.

So do you move your clocks forward or backward before going to bed that night? Well, it's actually pretty simple to remember.

In the spring you ‘spring forward’ and in the fall you ‘fall backward’. This means that the second weekend of November, you'll move your clocks from 2 a.m. back to 1 a.m.

This gives the added benefit of an extra hour of sleep! Unless you have young kids whose bodies don't understand the concept of time, in which case you will wake up an hour earlier (according to the clock) than you want. So…good luck preparing for that.

How to prepare for Daylight Saving Time

Start making changes the week before the end of DST:

Start the week before by getting as much light as possible each day. This can help adjust your body rhythm for the change to come.
Start winding down a little earlier in the evenings ahead. While you can never make up lost sleep, going into the time change well-rested can help.
Don’t compensate with extra caffeine. It may feel like an extra coffee or two can help you through the midday slump, but too much caffeine is not heart healthy.
Don’t take a nap. Most people don’t get enough sleep at any time; adding a cat nap to your afternoon can make it even harder to sleep well that night.

What is daylight saving time?

Daylight saving time is defined as a period between spring and fall when clocks in most parts of the country are set one hour ahead of standard time. According to federal law, it always starts on the second Sunday in March and ends on the first Sunday in November.

The practice of falling back in the U.S. started in 1918 during World War I as a way to conserve fuel. By moving the clocks ahead an hour, backers believed the country could divert a bit of coal-fired electricity to the military instead of using it for an hour of home power. It was reenacted in World War II.

It was repealed again when the war ended, but some states — and even some cities — continued to observe daylight saving time while others kept standard time year-round. That meant driving relatively short distances could result in a time change.

By 1966, airlines and other businesses tired of such quirks and pushed Congress to pass the Uniform Time Act. It codified daylight saving time, although it has been periodically modified.

Hawaii and Arizona (except the Navajo Nation) are the only two states in the nation that don’t follow time change. People in Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam and the Northern Marianas also don’t change their clocks.

On the West Coast, if the U.S. were to make the switch permanently to DST, for Seattle it would mean the sun would rise at 8:57 a.m. on Jan. 1 and set at 5:28 p.m. Farther south in Los Angeles, there would be a 7:58 a.m. sunrise and a 5:54 p.m. sunset.

Learn more about the history of daylight saving time and why Hawaii and Arizona do not participate - here.

What is the Sunshine Protection Act?

Senator backs bill to make daylight saving time permanent

Sunshine Protection Act: Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) discusses the US Senate's vote to make Daylight Saving Time permanent.

In March, the Senate unanimously approved a measure that would make daylight saving time permanent across the United States in November 2023.

The bipartisan bill, named the Sunshine Protection Act, would ensure Americans would no longer have to change their clocks twice a year. But the bill still needs approval from the House, and the signature of President Joe Biden, to become law.

Members of Congress have long been interested in the potential benefits and costs of daylight saving time, but whether the House will take up the Sunshine Protection Act this year is still up in the air.

Which states want to make daylight saving time permanent?

According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, 20 states have enacted legislation or passed resolutions to make daylight saving time permanent pending congressional approval. In some states, their law is dependent on surrounding states enacting the same law.

The 20 states that have voted in favor of year-round daylight saving time are: