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Reported by us | South Coast

Clocks fall back Sunday, Nov. 1, as a bill to end the switch waits in the Senate

Sunset jumps an hour earlier overnight. The House passed the Sunshine Protection Act in July, with the South Coast's two congressmen splitting their votes, and a Beacon Hill bill for year-round standard time went to a study in March.

By the SC360 Community Desk | Published Oct. 24, 2026 | Last verified Oct. 24, 2026, 5:35 a.m. ET

SOUTH COAST Clocks on the South Coast fall back one hour at 2 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 1, a few hours after Halloween, ending daylight saving time for 2026. In Fall River, sunset moves from 5:40 p.m. on Saturday to 4:39 p.m. on Sunday, and sunrise moves from 7:16 a.m. to 6:17 a.m., according to U.S. Naval Observatory tables.

Trick-or-treaters get the later sunset on Saturday. Overnight, the clock reaches 2 a.m. and becomes 1 a.m. again, so that hour repeats and Sunday runs an hour longer than a normal day.

What changes, and why on this date

Federal law sets the dates and the hour of the change. Under the Uniform Time Act, daylight saving time starts at 2 a.m. on the second Sunday of March and ends at 2 a.m. on the first Sunday of November. This year it began March 8. It now covers 238 days, or about 65% of the year, since the Energy Policy Act of 2005 added about a month starting in 2007, the National Institute of Standards and Technology says.

Radio-controlled clocks should reset on their own, NIST says, because its WWVB time signal tells them whether daylight or standard time is in effect. The next change comes Sunday, March 14, 2027, when clocks spring forward.

A state may opt out of daylight saving time and stay on standard time all year, as Hawaii and most of Arizona do. The law does not let a state stay on daylight time all year.

The shortest day

Days keep shortening until the winter solstice on Monday, Dec. 21, the Naval Observatory's tables show. That day the sun rises in Fall River at 7:08 a.m. and sets at 4:17 p.m. On year-round daylight time, the same day would run from an 8:08 a.m. sunrise to a 5:17 p.m. sunset.

The House vote

On Tuesday, July 14, the U.S. House passed the Sunshine Protection Act of 2025, H.R. 139, by a vote of 308-117. The bill, filed by Rep. Vern Buchanan, R-Fla., would make daylight time the permanent standard time and end the twice-yearly switch. States already exempt from daylight saving time could choose which standard time to keep.

The vote split both parties: Republicans voted 193-22 in favor and Democrats 114-95, and the one independent voted yes. Rep. Bill Keating, D-Mass., whose 9th District runs from Westport through New Bedford to the Cape and Islands, voted yes. Rep. Jake Auchincloss, D-Mass., whose 4th District includes Fall River, voted no.

The bill went to the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee on July 15. A Senate version, S. 29, filed by Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., lists Sen. Edward J. Markey, D-Mass., among its original cosponsors and has sat in the same committee since January 2025. Until both chambers pass the same bill and the president signs it, the clocks keep changing.

What each side argued

Supporters said ending the switch would help health and evening life. "Taking this action will increase the sunshine hours in the evening, allowing many Americans to leave work for more sunlight in the winter months, not darkness," Rep. Frank Pallone Jr., D-N.J., who voted yes, said during the House debate. Pallone is the top Democrat on the Energy and Commerce Committee. He said that since Congress tried year-round daylight time in 1974 and reversed it, many schools have pushed start times later and far fewer children walk to school.

Opponents said the trouble is the winter mornings. "Early morning light is an important environmental cue to set our bodies' internal clocks and promote alertness, and dim evening light tells our bodies that it is time to sleep," Rep. Madeleine Dean, D-Pa., who voted no, said in the same debate. She said the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the National Sleep Foundation favor permanent standard time if the clocks stop changing.

On Beacon Hill

A Massachusetts bill would go the other way. H.3405, filed by state Rep. Angelo J. Puppolo Jr., D-Springfield, would make standard time permanent in the state "to promote sleep and health," as its title puts it. The Joint Committee on State Administration and Regulatory Oversight scheduled a hearing on it for July 22, 2025, and on March 9 the bill was attached to a study order, H.5183.

Nineteen states have passed laws to move to year-round daylight time if Congress allows it, from Florida in 2018 to Texas in 2025, the National Conference of State Legislatures counts. Massachusetts and Rhode Island are not on that list. Massachusetts commissioned a study of the question in 2017.

Label: Reported by us, from the town's posted records.

Notes

Every fact comes from federal law (15 U.S.C. 260a), NIST's daylight saving time page, U.S. Naval Observatory sun tables for Fall River and New Bedford, the House-passed text, bill status and roll call for H.R. 139, the Congressional Record of the July 14 House debate, the bill status for S. 29, the Massachusetts Legislature's history for H.3405, the National Conference of State Legislatures' state legislation page, and the two congressmen's own district pages. We read all of them on Oct. 24, and no news outlet's reporting is used. We checked each date and weekday against a calendar: Oct. 31, 2026, is a Saturday; Nov. 1, March 8 and March 14, 2027, are Sundays; July 14 is a Tuesday and Dec. 21 a Monday. The quotes are from the Congressional Record. The party totals and each member's vote are from House roll call 238.

Corrections

No corrections to this story. If something here is wrong, tell us. Every correction is dated on the story and listed in our public log.

Sources (12)

  1. 15 U.S. Code 260a, Advancement of time or changeover datesFederal law (Uniform Time Act of 1966, as amended by Pub. L. 109-58, the Energy Policy Act of 2005): 2 a.m. on the second Sunday of March to 2 a.m. on the first Sunday of November; a state in one time zone may exempt itself and observe standard time all year. Read Oct. 24, 2026.
  2. Daylight Saving Time (DST) | NISTNational Institute of Standards and Technology. 2026 dates (March 8 to Nov. 1, 2 a.m. local), the repeated hour, 238 days or about 65% of the year, the 2007 change under the Energy Policy Act of 2005, places that do not observe DST, WWVB radio-controlled clocks. Read Oct. 24, 2026.
  3. U.S. Naval Observatory, one-day sun and moon data (Fall River 41.70 N, 71.16 W; New Bedford 41.64 N, 70.93 W)Fall River: Oct. 31 (UTC-4) rise 7:16 a.m., set 5:40 p.m.; Nov. 1 (UTC-5) rise 6:17 a.m., set 4:39 p.m.; Dec. 21 rise 7:08 a.m., set 4:17 p.m. (UTC-5) and 8:08 a.m., 5:17 p.m. (UTC-4). New Bedford matched within a minute. Earth's seasons table: winter solstice Dec. 21, 2026, 3:50 p.m. EST. Read Oct. 24, 2026.
  4. H.R. 139, Sunshine Protection Act of 2025, engrossed in HouseBill text as passed by the House July 14, 2026: repeals 15 U.S.C. 260a, advances standard time one hour, lets already-exempt states choose. Read Oct. 24, 2026.
  5. H.R. 139 bill status (Library of Congress via GovInfo)Sponsor Rep. Buchanan, Vern [R-FL-16]; passed the House 308-117 (Roll no. 238) July 14, 2026; received in the Senate and referred to Commerce, Science, and Transportation July 15, 2026, the latest action. Read Oct. 24, 2026.
  6. House roll call 238, July 14, 2026, On Passage, H.R. 139Totals by party: Republican 193 yea, 22 nay, 3 not voting; Democratic 114 yea, 95 nay, 3 not voting; Independent 1 yea. Keating (D-MA) Yea; Auchincloss (D-MA) Nay; Pallone (D-NJ) Yea; Dean (D-PA) Nay. Read Oct. 24, 2026.
  7. Congressional Record, July 14, 2026, H4445 to H4451, Sunshine Protection Act of 2025House debate. Pallone and Dean quotes and the 1974 exchange as quoted. Read Oct. 24, 2026.
  8. S. 29 bill status (Library of Congress via GovInfo)Sunshine Protection Act of 2025, introduced Jan. 7, 2025, by Sen. Scott, Rick [R-FL]; Sen. Markey, Edward J. [D-MA] an original cosponsor; referred to Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Read Oct. 24, 2026.
  9. Bill H.3405, 194th General CourtAn Act establishing permanent standard time within the Commonwealth to promote sleep and health, by Representative Puppolo of Springfield; referred to State Administration and Regulatory Oversight Feb. 27, 2025; hearing scheduled July 22, 2025; accompanied a study order, H5183, March 9, 2026. Read Oct. 24, 2026.
  10. Daylight Saving Time | State Legislation, National Conference of State LegislaturesPage updated Oct. 12, 2026. The 19 states with year-round DST laws contingent on Congress, Florida (2018) to Texas (2025); the 2017 Massachusetts study; Puppolo (D) on H 3405. Read Oct. 24, 2026.
  11. Congressman Bill Keating, Representing the 9th District of MassachusettsDistrict description: the Cape and Islands, South Coast and South Shore, west to Westport, including New Bedford. Read Oct. 24, 2026.
  12. Our District | Congressman Jake AuchinclossThe Fourth District stretches from Fall River, Attleboro and Taunton to Newton and Brookline. Read Oct. 24, 2026.

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