7 March, 2013
At 2 a.m. on March 10, 2013, groggy Americans will turn their clocks forward one hour, marking the beginning of Daylight Saving Time (DST).
The federal law that established "daylight time" in the United States does not require any area to observe daylight saving time. But if a state chooses to observe DST, it must follow the starting and ending dates set by the law. From 1986 to 2006 this was the first Sunday in April to the last Sunday in October, but starting in 2007, it is observed from the second Sunday in March to the first Sunday in November, adding about a month to daylight saving time.
Daylight Savings Time is also a good time to change the batteries in you smoke detectors. A working smoke detector can provide crucial extra seconds to escape a burning home. Two-thirds (65%) of home fire deaths result from fires in homes without working smoke detectors. The International Association of Fire Chiefs and Energizer remind families to adopt the life-saving habit of Change Your Clock Change Your Battery this weekend by changing the batteries in their smoke alarms when they change their clocks back to Standard time.
