The U.S. House voted 308-117 in July to advance the Sunshine Protection Act, moving Daylight Saving Time year-round one step closer to federal law. Residents in Georgia would keep the current summer clock pattern through winter if Congress finishes the job.
Brian Monahan of WSB-TV said Atlanta’s winter sunrise and sunset could shift from roughly 7:38 a.m. and 5:32 p.m. to 8:38 a.m. and 6:32 p.m. around the winter solstice. The amount of daylight would not grow; the clocks would simply place it later in the day.
Georgia and the Senate
The U.S. House vote matters because Georgia lawmakers approved legislation in 2021 directing the state to observe daylight saving time year-round. That state law cannot take effect unless federal law changes to let states remain on daylight saving time throughout the year.
Georgia is one of 19 states that have enacted legislation supporting permanent daylight saving time if federal law changes. Under the current system, residents in Georgia still switch from daylight saving time to standard time in November, and that November change moves sunrise and sunset one hour earlier.
Atlanta winter clock change
Monahan’s Atlanta example shows the practical shift for readers: winter mornings would start later on the clock, and winter evenings would stay lighter later. Across 20 Georgia locations, sunrise is now between 6:51 and 7:06 a.m. on Dec. 31, while sunset ranges from 8:03 to 8:23 p.m.
Under permanent daylight saving time, those winter times would move about one hour later, while summer in Georgia would look essentially the same because daylight saving time already runs from March through early November. The Sunshine Protection Act still needs Senate approval before the change can become law.
Residents in Georgia
The House vote on the bill leaves Georgia residents waiting on whether the Senate will approve the Sunshine Protection Act. If that happens, the state’s own year-round daylight saving time law could finally line up with federal law and take effect.
