Congress' energy bill would extend daylight-saving time

Daylight-saving time would last a month longer under the provision.

A federal energy bill would tinker with Americans' clocks, extending daylight-saving time by a month to reduce electricity consumption.

The provision is included in a sweeping bill ironed out by House and Senate negotiators who worked into the early hours Tuesday in hopes of getting the legislation wrapped up before Congress departs for its summer recess.

Some parents and parent groups oppose the idea, arguing that it puts school children at risk because they will have to go to school while it is still dark outside.

The National PTA opposes the extension. So do some PTA leaders locally.

"I don't think it is a good idea," said Susan McClanahan of Cape Girardeau, who is treasurer of the citywide PTA council.

She has a son and a daughter enrolled in the public school system.

"I think it is harder to get them up when it is dark," she said. "I don't think they are quite as alert and awake."

She takes her children to school. But she said many school children ride buses. Children waiting for buses in the dark raises safety concerns, she said.

Laura Ritter, the president of the citywide PTA Council, also worries about safety.

She has a son in junior high and a daughter who is a high school junior and new at driving. She doesn't like the idea of her daughter or any other high school student driving to school when it is still dark outside.

If signed into law, the change would take effect in spring 2007.

The National PTA said the extension could increase the potential for more accidents and abductions as students are forced to go to school while it is still dark.

The Air Transport Association, which represents major U.S. airlines, said it would create scheduling problems for international flights which could cost the industry millions of dollars in lost business.

The criticism doesn't sway U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Emerson, R-Cape Girardeau, who supports the energy bill.

She said the provision could save energy.

A 1970s federal study suggested that extending daylight-saving time could save the equivalent of 100,000 barrels of oil a day. But Emerson doubts the energy savings can be easily calculated.

Extending daylight-saving time is a small part of the energy bill, she said. "The daylight-saving time piece is not a deal breaker. I do not have a specific problem with it."

More important is the fact that the bill would expand ethanol use in gasoline to 7.5 million gallons a year by 2012, she said, about double the expected production this year.

"It is taking us in the right direction in moving us away from dependence on foreign oil," Emerson said.

The bill won't cause gasoline prices to go down immediately but could lead to the building of more oil refineries in the U.S., she said.

The measure includes a provision to slow government review of any proposed purchase by China of a U.S. oil company, a move Emerson said is designed to prevent China from buying Unocal Corp.

The energy bill also is expected to include a package of energy-tax subsidies totaling about $11.5 billion over 10 years, according to GOP and Democratic sources on Capitol Hill.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

mbliss@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 123

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DAYLIGHT-SAVING TIME

History of Daylight-Saving Time

* Benjamin Franklin is credited with the idea of rising earlier in the morning to save on candle wax in the evening hours.

* A century ago, British builder William Willett proposed resetting the clocks.

* The United States first implemented day-light saving time during World War I and imposed it again in World War II.

* Congress created some consistency with the Uniform Time Act of 1966.

* Lawmakers extended daylight-saving time to 10 full months in 1974 in the wake of the Arab oil embargo.

* The current calendar was set in 1986.

* Two states -- Arizona and Hawaii -- still don't have daylight-saving time.

* Part of Indiana, which had refused to "spring forward" for years, is scheduled to implement daylight-saving time next year.

Source: heraldnewsonline.com

Pros and Cons of extending DST

Pros

* Energy: Proponents predict reduction in electricity consumption.

* Accidents: Daylight later into the evening helps reduce serious traffic accidents during the busiest driving time of the day.

* Recreation: Football teams and golfers will have more daylight after school and work.

* Halloween: Trick-or-treaters can safely start their rounds before darkness falls.

Cons

* School children: Students may end up standing at bus stops or walking to school in the dark.

* Airlines: Carriers could face scheduling problems for overseas flights.

Source: Houston Chronicle