Daylight Wasting Time in Indiana

Enjoying the early-starting daylight saving time yet? When Congress voted to extend daylight savings time for a month, lawmakers justified the act as a way to reduce energy consumption. Now, a detailed study of actual energy usage in Indiana suggests that daylight saving time may really result in increased energy use.

After years of allowing each its counties to decide individually whether or not to observe daylight saving time, the Indiana legislature voted to make daylight saving time mandatory statewide beginning in spring 2006. Since then, researchers have been studying the actual effect of daylight saving time on energy usage in Indiana.

According the an article in the Wall Street Journal: "[The] research showed that while an extra hour of daylight in the evenings may mean less electricity is spent on lights, it also means that houses are warmer in the summer when people come home from work. Conversely, during daylight-saving time's cooler months, people may crank up the thermostats more in the morning."

The results of the research? Switching to statewide observance of daylight saving time cost Indiana households an additional $8.6 million in electricity bills.

Why? Because it's Hot! The reason, said researchers, is the simple fact that in some states it gets really hot in the summer and in those states, like Indiana, "Daylight saving means running the air conditioner more."

Friends of daylight saving time responded by citing research showing that the extra hour sunshine in the evenings results in "less crime, fewer traffic fatalities, more recreation time and increased economic activity."

Also See:
About Daylight Saving Time
Bill Extends Daylight Saving Time