A Quick Reference to Daylight Saving Time 

Daylight Saving Time (DST) is an annual event which adds one hour of daylight to each day by resetting clocks forward one hour each spring. Each fall those geographic areas which follow Daylight Saving Time reset their clocks back to the local standard time. Though there are many benefits; the most tangible is energy conservation as a result of lower artificial light usage. 

An atomic clock, of which the time is radio controlled, can simplify the time change. Watches using the same technology assist travelers moving between Time zones. 

The chart below is a quick reference to the 2008 through 2010 Daylight Saving Time cycle: 

The Energy Policy Act of 2005 extended Daylight Saving Time by approximately four weeks effective 2007. Therefore the spring start date is the second Sunday in March and ends the on the first Sunday in November.

 EXCEPTIONS 

Of course there are exceptions to the observance of Daylight Saving Time. They are as follows:

§    Arizona, with the exception of the Navajo Indian Reservation, does not follow Daylight Saving Time. As Phoenix and Tucson are two of the hottest metropolitan areas in the country, the increased use of air conditioning offsets the anticipated energy savings as result of the lower lighting usage.

§    Hawaii does not observe Daylight Saving Time. The change of lighting during the course of the year is reduced in tropical areas approaching the Equator.

§    Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, Guam, and American Samoa do not observe Daylight Saving Time.

Daylight Saving Time Safety Reminders

Check the batteries in your smoke detectors and flashlights. Your smoke detector battery should be changed every year, and tested every month.

Check your fire extinguisher to make sure it is fully charged and ready for use (be sure that the gauge is in the green).

Check the expiration dates on the water and the food in your disaster kit. Drink the water and eat the food if the dates are about to expire, and replace whatever you use.