Time change 2023: Spring ahead on Sunday

VANCOUVER –

Most Canadians will turn their clocks forward an hour tonight, but legislation in the United States that could end the seasonal time change is also moving forward.

Last week, US Senator Marco Rubio reintroduced the Sunlight Protection Act, which would allow states to make daylight saving time permanent.

If passed, the law would have knock-on effects across Canada, as provinces including British Columbia and Ontario wait for neighboring US states to abandon the time change before they do the same.

BC Premier David Eby says the province wants to stay “in sync” with the West Coast American states and he’s “very much looking forward to getting rid of daylight saving time.”

The US bill, first proposed in 2018, has repeatedly failed to pass both houses of Congress and stalled in the House of Representatives last March without a vote.

University of British Columbia business professor Werner Antweiler says the latest version of the bill has bipartisan support, and if passed, BC’s time change to 2 a.m. Sunday could be the last.

Most states, as well as the territories of Nunavut and the Northwest Territories, will move their clocks forward one hour on Sunday.

The Yukon and most of Saskatchewan keep their clocks year-round. Yuko last transitioned in March 2020.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on March 11, 2023.