(The Center Square) – Creating permanent daylight saving time could help improve everything from workplace productivity to heart attacks, according to a new analysis.
The Columbus-based Scioto Analysis developed a cost-benefit analysis of daylight saving time that says the state could see an economic benefit of between $39 million and $41 million annually by switching to permanent daylight saving time.
Most Americans fall back an hour this weekend.
“The best available evidence suggests changing clocks has public health and productivity impact that disrupts the economy twice a year,” Scioto Analysis Principal Rob Moore said.
For a switch to happen, though, federal law would have to change. Currently, states can only permanently operate on standard time.
According to the Sleep Foundation, no proposed changes to the federal Sunshine Protection Act have come to a vote.
“We analyzed the impacts of changing to permanent standard or daylight saving time on car crashes, energy use, productivity and crime. The largest impact of moving to permanent daylight saving or standard time would be the impact on productivity each year,” the authors wrote. “Moving to permanent daylight saving or standard time would save Ohio metropolitan areas roughly $30 million each year in lost productivity.”
The report showed the most significant impact would come on crime. The extra hour of daylight in the evenings, according to the report, leads to fewer crimes each year.
“We project the present net benefit of a change to permanent daylight saving time to be between $39 million and $41 million, due mostly to increased productivity and a reduction in crime because of the extra hour of sunlight in the night,” the report says.
It noted other benefits of switching to permanent daylight saving time are related to removing changing of the clock twice a year, which the report says research has can cause additional car crashes, health problems and lower productivity.
