Daylight Saving Time
By Arizona State Historian Marshall Trimble
Arizona has always taken pride in marching to the beat of its own drum. For example, in the contiguous United States, all states but Arizona went on Daylight Saving Time (DST) last month. So, why doesn’t Arizona recognize DST? Do we have enough sunshine without it?
Arizona did go on DST with the rest of the nation on June 21, 1967. The sun didn’t set that day until almost a quarter of nine. Restaurateurs and owners of drive-in theaters protested that it was killing business. Baseball umpires were wearing sunglasses during night games. In the spirit of “when they turn up the heat, I feel the pressure,” the state legislature voted the following year to opt out on the law, and Arizona has been off DST ever since.
The concept of Daylight Saving Time has been around a long time. Ben Franklin first proposed it without success in 1784. It was formally adopted in 1918 during World War I to preserve daylight, provide standard time, and save energy. It proved so unpopular that it was repealed in 1919, but it was still a local option for states. It was reinstated during World War II. After the war, DST ended again, and from 1945 to 1966, there was no federal law addressing it. States and towns could decide whether they wanted it. This created a colossal mess, as in the twin cities of St. Paul/Minneapolis.
In 1996, the Uniform Time Act mandated that DST begin on the first Sunday in April and end on the last Sunday of October. Today, Arizona and Hawaii are the only states that don’t have DST. Even more confusing, in Arizona, the Navajo Reservation observes DST, but the Hopi Reservation doesn’t. It’s possible to drive north from Flagstaff to the Navajo Reservation and change time at Tuba City, then drive a mile to Moencopi on the Hopi Reservation and change time again. From there, drive across the Hopi Mesas to Ganado in Navajoland and change again. Then, drive sixty miles south to Holbrook and change time once more.
If that sounds confusing, consider the time the politicians tried to create “Phoenix Time.” During territorial years in Arizona, there was a long-running debate as to whether the territory was more closely tied to California or New Mexico, so a compromise was reached: Phoenix Time was created in which they split the difference, putting Arizona a half-hour after Pacific Time and a half-hour before Mountain Time. Needless to say, that one created even more chaos and was quickly dropped.
My Navajo friends tell me that the only thing that matters up on the Navajo Reservation is “Indian Time.” After reading this article, you may agree that they have the right idea.