12 reasons to quit Daylight Savings Time in Alaska

Lynn Willis, the guy that runs this site - www.endalaskadaylightsaving.com - used to call in to my show frequently, especially when Daylight Savings Time rolled around. For the most part I agree with him that, in the Land of the Midnight Sun, it's hard to justify a need to change our clocks twice a year. I understand the main argument that it helps us carry on business with Seattle and the rest of the U.S., but it's still silly. Because of DST, sunset in Homer tonight was an hour earlier. Bummer.

Here are Lynn's Top 12 reasons to quit DST in Alaska:

1. Alaskans live in " The land of the Midnight Sun".

2. Instant time change disturbs sleep patterns which creates a state sponsored "jet lag".

3. There is no longer a compelling need to impact every Alaskan twice each year with this law.

4. With creation of the single Alaskan Time Zone in 1983  most of Alaska went  on  permanent DST.

5. When we advance clocks each year, we create" double" DST in most of Alaska which causes a two hour difference between "sun time" and "clock time" in the rail belt region including Fairbanks and Anchorage and three hours in Western Alaska communities and villages.

6. Advances in communication technology now allow business and personal contact 24/7 to anywhere in the nation or world.

7. Alaska will be in a different time zone with or without DST.

8. Alaska now does business with the Pacific Far East where DST is not used.

9. No Alaskan utility claims a savings of energy by use of DST which is why the Federal Government allows its use in those states that opt to use DST (Hawaii and Arizona don't use DST).

10. Changing every time keeping device in homes and businesses, including indoor mechanical heating/cooling/security systems, is expensive and time consuming.

11. DST doesn't affect the many devices now  using  photoelectric sensors that respond to ambient light,  not the time of day.

12. Thousands of Alaskans signed a petition asking to vote on this issue and polling data from Dittman Research and Hellenthal & Associates shows majority of Alaskans would support ending DST use in Alaska.