NEWS
Fall back one hour at 2 a.m. Sunday
At 2 a.m. on Nov. 5 most of the country will set their clocks back one hour saying good-bye to Daylight Saving Time, but many also thought the time change was going to become permanent after a bill was introduced in 2022.
The Sunshine Protection Act would permanently extend daylight saving time from just eight months to the full year. The bill was first introduced in January 2021 by Rep. Vern Buchanan and then re-introduced by Sen. Marco Rubio and seven other bipartisan members of Congress in March 2022. To become law it would have to be passed by the House and signed into law by President Joe Biden. The bill was “held at the desk,” which means they never voted on it according to congress.gov.
On March 1, 2023 Rubio’s bill was referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation. An identical bill by Buchanan was referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce the same day, then went to subcommittee on March 10.
The delay in passage stems from debate on which time should be permanent. The bill makes daylight saving time permanent eliminating the need to change clocks twice a year. Those arguing again DST insist standard time is the safer option.
The Standard Time Act of 1918 was the first law to implement standard and daylight saving times at the federal level. It was seen as a way to add another hour of daylight to the evenings. There also are arguments it helps farmers and saves energy.
The U.S. Department of Transportation oversees the observance of daylight saving time as well as U.S. time zones. Arizona and Hawaii do not recognize daylight saving time.
More than 70 countries in the world observe daylight saving time, however the start and end dates may differ. Less than 40% of countries across the globe still observe daylight saving time changes, despite more than 140 countries implementing them previously according to statista.com.
With the time period still in place remember to change your clocks before going to bed Saturday night so you won’t be late on Sunday.
Texans continue to go to the elections polls as voters decide who will face off in the November general election to fill the 30th Senatorial District seat.
Both the Democratic and Republican Parties will have party primary runoffs on May 28 as they try to select a candidate to fill the seat of Senator Drew Springer (R-Muenster) who chose not to see a second-four-year term after winning a special election in 2020. He ran unopposed in 2022.
There were multiple candidates in both party primaries back in March and no one was able to garner the necessary majority. The top two vote-getters will face off to determine a winner for the November ballot.
Early voting for the runoff runs May 20-24 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the Montague County Courthouse Annex Community Room. This is the only location for early voting.
On election day voting polls will be located in the courthouse annex, Bowie Senior Citizens Center, Nocona City Hall and Saint Jo Civic Center. They will be open 7 a.m.. to 7 p.m.
Those who voted in the March primary can only cast ballots in that party primary, voters cannot switch parties. Those who did not vote in the primary can vote in either party primary.
Read more on this story in the mid-week Bowie News.
By BARBARA GREEN
[email protected]
Montague County Commissioners will make plans to take bids for a radio console at the sheriff’s office after a portion of the unit went down.
That was just one of the many topics in Monday’s court session. An executive session to discuss pending litigation was tabled after County Judge Kevin Benton reported a conference call with the other party’s attorney and County Attorney Clay Riddle showed they were not ready for discussion and he asked it be tabled, which was approved.
On the radio console, the court has been talking about the unit since Sheriff’ Marshall Thomas reported the console has reached the end of its life expectancy of eight years and was having lots of problems. The county had applied for a grant to help pay for it, but it won’t be announced until June.
The radio system has two parts said Thomas and one unit has completely stopped working, however, they are still able to use the radio for now and handle 911 service. Judge Benton said in looking at the estimated costs it was expected to be just under the $50,000 bid limit hovering around $42,000; however, they also have found the unit needs five radios through which it can transmit from the two computers which will push up the price.
Read the full story in the mid-week Bowie News.
Infrastructure projects once more dominate the agenda of the Bowie City Council when it meets at 6 p.m. on May 13.
A pair of proclamations open the meeting, one for Emergency Medical Services Week and National Travel and Tourism Week.
City Manager Bert Cunningham will present information on the substation transformer project, the phase two sewer line replacement contract, status of the infrastructure fund and plans for the budget.
A pair of public works requests will ask for $24,000 out of the infrastructure fund to buy nine fire hydrants and $29,825 from the meter tap account to buy replacement meters. Public Works Director Stony Lowrance is expected to make that presentation.
Read the full story in the weekend Bowie News.
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