Orthodox Jews Push Back on Permanent Daylight Saving Bill
A bipartisan bill to make daylight saving time permanent cleared the U.S. House of Representatives on July 14 with a decisive 308-117 vote, but the legislation has encountered unexpected opposition from Orthodox Jewish organizations who warn it would disrupt morning prayer schedules, create safety risks for schoolchildren, and impose extreme hardship on observant communities. The Sunshine Protection Act, championed by President Donald Trump, now heads to the Senate, where its fate remains uncertain.
The Legislation and Its Support
The Sunshine Protection Act would eliminate the twice-yearly clock change and provide an extra hour of evening sunlight year-round. President Trump has described the clock-changing ritual as a “ridiculous, twice yearly production” on his Truth Social account, as NPR reported. The bill enjoys broad bipartisan support, having passed the House with nearly two-thirds of members voting in favor.
Why Orthodox Jews Object
For observant Jews, the issue centers on the morning prayer service, Shacharit, which by Jewish law cannot begin before specific times tied to sunrise. The service, which includes the Shema — the central prayer of Jewish life — must be recited communally in a minyan, a quorum of 10 Jewish adults. A typical morning service lasts 35 minutes but can extend to nearly an hour on certain occasions.
Permanent daylight saving time would push sunrise after 8 a.m. in most parts of the country and after 9 a.m. in select locations. In South Bend, Indiana, for example, sunrise would occur after 9 a.m. — and as late as 9:13 a.m. — for 55 days per year. In Detroit, Michigan, sunrise would be after 9 a.m. for 23 days per year.
“The bottom line is, if prayers have to start an hour later that will have a direct effect on people getting to work and on when schools can start,” said Rabbi A.D. Motzen, national director of government affairs for Agudath Israel of America. “It becomes a communal issue when, for example, a synagogue that has had a morning prayer service for 100 years suddenly does not have a quorum of 10 men who can show up at the prayer time close to 9 o’clock because they have jobs.”
Coalition of Opposition
Agudath Israel of America, the Orthodox Union, and the Coalition for Jewish Values are leading the opposition. In a formal statement issued after the House vote, Agudath Israel said: “The extension of DST will create an extreme hardship on observant Jews. It would be extraordinarily difficult — if not impossible — to arrive on time for a job and will affect the start time of our schools.”
The organization also expressed concern about children walking to school in pre-dawn darkness, a safety issue shared by school boards and parents nationwide. “Permanent DST would mean sunrises after 9 a.m. in some parts of the country for weeks in the winter thereby causing many of America’s schoolchildren to head for school — by foot, by bicycle, or by bus — in the pre-sunrise darkness and putting them at increased risk,” the statement read.
Political Dynamics
Orthodox Jews make up approximately 9% of the estimated 5.8 million Jewish adults in the United States, according to Pew Research Center. Larger Jewish organizations have not publicly taken a position on the bill, reflecting a broader divide between Orthodox and non-Orthodox communities on certain public policy issues.
The coalition has found an ally in Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR), who objected to fast-tracking the bill in 2025. Agudath Israel noted that it already has Cotton’s support.
Historical Precedent
Congress has grappled with this issue before. In 1974, the U.S. experimented with year-round daylight saving time but repealed it within months following widespread public outcry over dark winter mornings. In 2022, the Senate unanimously passed a similar measure, but it died in the House. Agudath Israel pointed to this history in its statement, noting that “the last time this happened in the 1970’s the popularity of the measure dropped dramatically once Americans experienced one dark winter.”
A Nuanced Perspective
Not all Orthodox voices are entirely opposed. Writing for Chabad.org, Menachem Posner noted an upside: with permanent DST, Shabbat would start one hour later on short winter Fridays, giving Jews “one more hour to prepare for Shabbat,” as the Jewish Telegraphic Agency reported. Chabad.org did not take a formal position on the bill.
What’s Next
The Sunshine Protection Act now moves to the Senate, where its prospects are uncertain. Agudath Israel has launched a “Take Action” campaign urging the Senate to reject the measure, while also calling on lawmakers to consider alternatives such as permanent standard time or maintaining the current system. The organization expressed hope that “the Senate will consider all of the effects of DST and compare them to the effects of permanent standard time or maintaining the status quo before rushing into this major change.”
With the 1974 experiment serving as a cautionary tale and a vocal religious minority pressing its case, the debate over whether to “lock the clock” is far from settled. The coming weeks will determine whether the Senate heeds the Orthodox coalition’s concerns or moves forward with one of the most significant timekeeping changes in a generation.