Kansas will soon spring forward and lose sleep. When does daylight saving time start?
If you’re ready for more sunlight, you won’t have to wait much longer. Daylight saving time begins at 2 a.m. Sunday, March 9, when Kansas residents “spring forward” and move their clocks ahead one hour.
Spring officially begins Thursday, March 20, and Wichita residents have warmer days in the forecast after record-breaking cold and heavy snowfall earlier in the year. The National Weather Service Wichita office forecasts the city will see sunny skies and a high of 76 degrees Fahrenheit Monday.
But will Kansas put an end to the tradition of changing clocks twice a year? Here’s what to know.
Daylight saving time legislation in Kansas
Bills relating to daylight saving time often circulate the Kansas legislature. One recent effort was Senate Bill 1, which would make Kansas exempt from daylight saving time, with a provision to move to permanent daylight saving time if allowed by Congress. This bill was introduced in January.
Senate Bill 1 is far from the only effort to end clock-changing, and the U.S. Senate has signed off on similar legislation for the nation. So far, Hawaii and Arizona are the only states that don’t observe daylight saving time, and the Navajo Nation portion of Arizona does practice it.
Daylight saving time was made a legal requirement by the Uniform Time Act of 1966, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics. State governments cannot independently change time zones or the length of daylight saving time, the department reports, but they can exempt themselves from the practice.
“States do not have the authority to choose to be on permanent Daylight Saving Time,” the U.S. Department of Transportation website reads.
This year’s daylight saving time will end at 2 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 2.
Sunrise and sunset times in Wichita
Wichita sunsets have been happening later in the day since the Dec. 21, winter solstice.
Here’s how sunrise and sunset times will change in Wichita in the coming months, according to global online clock Time and Date:
Saturday, March 8: 6:50 a.m. sunrise, 6:30 p.m. sunset
Sunday, March 9 (beginning of daylight saving time): 7:48 a.m. sunrise, 7:31 p.m. sunset
Monday, March 31: 7:15 a.m. sunrise, 7:51 p.m. sunset
Tuesday, April 15: 6:53 a.m. sunrise, 8:05 p.m. sunset
Wednesday, April 30: 6:34 a.m. sunrise, 8:19 p.m. sunset
Thursday, May 15: 6:19 a.m. sunrise, 8:32 p.m. sunset
Saturday, May 31: 6:09 a.m. sunrise, 8:44 p.m. sunset
