Georgia still observes daylight saving time in 2026, with clocks springing forward in March and falling back in November. A bill to end the twice-yearly change by moving Georgia into the Atlantic time zone cleared the state Senate in March 2026, but it still needs a final House vote, the governor’s signature, and federal approval before your clock behaves any differently. Nothing has taken effect yet.
Where Things Stand Right Now
If you live or do business in Georgia, treat the clock change as a normal part of the year for the foreseeable future. No state legislation has taken effect. No federal petition has been filed. The Sunshine Protection Act, the federal bill that would let states go to permanent DST directly, remains stalled in committee. Even in the most optimistic scenario where House Bill 154 passes, gets signed, and the U.S. Department of Transportation approves the petition quickly, the federal process alone runs a minimum of six months to a year.
Why Georgia Cannot Simply Choose Permanent DST
The biggest misconception in this debate is that Georgia can end clock changes on its own. Whether that is true depends on which direction the state wants to go.
Under federal law, any state can opt out of daylight saving time entirely and stay on permanent standard time without congressional approval. The statute lets a state “by law exempt itself from the provisions of this subsection providing for the advancement of time,” so long as the exemption covers the entire state.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 260a – Advancement of Time or Changeover Dates Arizona and Hawaii have done this for decades.
What states cannot do is lock in permanent daylight saving time. The U.S. Department of Transportation puts it directly: “States do not have the authority to choose to be on permanent Daylight Saving Time.”2U.S. Department of Transportation. Uniform Time That option requires Congress to amend the Uniform Time Act. At least 45 states have proposed some form of DST change since 2015, and every one aiming at permanent DST is waiting on the same federal bottleneck.3Congress.gov. Daylight Saving Time (DST)
Georgia’s legislative efforts have consistently aimed at keeping the later evening light DST provides, not reverting to permanent standard time with earlier winter sunsets. That aim is what has forced the state into workarounds.
What Georgia Has Passed and Proposed
Senate Bill 100 (2021)
Georgia’s first major effort was Senate Bill 100, passed by the General Assembly and signed by the governor in 2021. It would put the state on daylight saving time year-round.4Georgia Governor’s Office. Senate Bill 100 – Signed Legislation The bill included a contingency clause: it takes effect only if Congress amends the Uniform Time Act to permit permanent DST. Congress has not done so, and SB 100 sits on the books with no practical effect.
House Bill 154 (2026)
The current effort takes a different approach. House Bill 154, which passed the Georgia Senate in March 2026, would move Georgia from the Eastern time zone into the Atlantic time zone. The daily effect would match permanent Eastern Daylight Time: clocks would stop changing, and evenings would stay lighter later throughout the year. The bill still needs a final House vote and the governor’s signature before Georgia can begin the federal petition process.
The time-zone route matters because it sidesteps the permanent-DST prohibition entirely. Instead of asking Congress to change the Uniform Time Act, Georgia would petition the Secretary of Transportation for a time zone reassignment, which is a separate federal process with its own rules.
What the Federal Petition Would Involve
If HB 154 becomes law, Georgia would petition the U.S. Department of Transportation to move from Eastern to Atlantic time. The request must come from the governor or the state legislature and must include detailed information showing the change would “serve the convenience of commerce,” including impacts on supply chains, transportation, media markets, and how residents already conduct daily life.5U.S. Department of Transportation. Procedure for Moving an Area from One Time Zone to Another
The DOT’s Office of the General Counsel reviews the petition, decides whether to issue a proposed rule, and opens a public comment period of roughly two months. A public hearing in the affected community is typical. Even a routine county-level change takes six months to a year from start to finish. A statewide reassignment covering a major population center like Atlanta would likely take longer. If approved, the DOT tries to align the effective date with the next scheduled DST transition so people are not adjusting their clocks twice in a short span.5U.S. Department of Transportation. Procedure for Moving an Area from One Time Zone to Another
The Sunshine Protection Act as an Alternative Route
Separate from anything Georgia does, the Sunshine Protection Act has been reintroduced in every recent Congress. The 2025 version was introduced in both chambers in January 2025.6Congress.gov. H.R.139 – 119th Congress (2025-2026) – Sunshine Protection Act of 20257Congress.gov. S.29 – 119th Congress (2025-2026) – Sunshine Protection Act of 2025 The House version was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, where it has sat without further action. A prior Senate version passed unanimously in 2022 but died in the House without a vote.
If the Sunshine Protection Act ever passes, states could adopt permanent DST directly, and Georgia’s time-zone workaround would be unnecessary. Counting on that outcome before Georgia exhausts its own options would be optimistic.
If Georgia Moves and Its Neighbors Don’t
Georgia borders five states, and none of them have enacted a similar change. If Georgia moves to the Atlantic time zone while Alabama, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Florida remain on Eastern time, Georgia would run one hour ahead of every neighbor for roughly eight months of the year, during the period those states observe standard time. When those neighbors are on DST, the clocks would align.
That mismatch affects cross-border commuters, broadcast schedules, airline connections through Hartsfield-Jackson, and any business operating across state lines. Courts handling multistate cases would need to specify which time zone governs deadlines, which is not currently an issue when neighboring states share a zone.
What Employers Owe Workers During the Current Transitions
Until the law changes, Georgia employers still handle two clock shifts a year, and the payroll rules catch more businesses than they should. The Fair Labor Standards Act requires that employees be credited for every hour actually worked, which creates a mismatch between scheduled hours and actual hours on transition weekends.
In the spring, when clocks jump from 2:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m., an employee scheduled for an eight-hour overnight shift only works seven hours. In the fall, when clocks fall back from 2:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m., the same eight-hour shift becomes nine actual hours. The Department of Labor’s guidance is direct: pay for actual hours worked, not scheduled hours.8U.S. Department of Labor. FLSA Hours Worked Advisor – Daylight Savings Time That extra fall hour can also push an employee past 40 hours for the week, triggering overtime.
Employers using automated time-tracking systems should confirm the software handles the transitions correctly. A system that records clock-in and clock-out times by the displayed clock will miscalculate hours during both changes. Systems that track in UTC and convert to local time for display avoid the problem.
Georgia is closer to ending the clock change than it has ever been, but the federal process still stands between what the legislature wants and what your alarm clock does.