Time for a Change -- Don't Forget to Fall Back Granby

Most Connecticut residents probably will welcome the opportunity to gain an hour of sleep when they turn back the clocks this weekend, marking the end of Daylight Saving Time.

But there won’t be one benefit with the return to Eastern Standard Time.

According to the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection, “When Connecticut residents and businesses turn the clock back to 1 a.m. Sunday, patrons and owners of cafes, bars and restaurants that sell liquor are not allowed a “do-over” of that last hour. When daylight saving time ends Sunday at 2 a.m., no further sales or consumption of alcoholic liquor is permitted in Connecticut’s restaurants, clubs, and bars.”

Consumer Protection Commissioner William M. Rubenstein said in a statement, “Although we turn the clock back to 1:00 a.m., the law does not allow liquor sales to restart or continue”. Rubenstein added, “On Sunday, once 2 a.m. is reached -- the first time -- all liquor sales and consumption must stop.”

Most digital devices including phones and computers will automatically reset the time. However, analog devices such as stove and microwave clocks will have to be reset manually. And public safety officials say it’s a good time to change the batteries in smoke detectors as well.

Here’s a bit of history on the practice of ‘falling back” the first Saturday in November every year.

According to WGNO.com, The Uniform Time Act of 1966 provided the basis for alternating between Daylight Saving Time and standard time. However, there have been many changes over the years.

In 1973 Daylight Saving Time (DST) was observed all year, instead of just the spring and summer. Then in 1986, Congress declared that DST would begin at 2 a.m. on the first Sunday in April and end at 2 a.m. on the last Sunday in October.

Fourteen years later, Congress voted in 2007 to switch the end of daylight saving time to the first Sunday in November to offer trick-or-treaters more daylight time to venture into the streets, despite the fact that most children wait until after dark to go out.

While most states observe the spring forward/fall back time switch, Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands and Arizona do not change the clock.

Photo credit: Jason Rogers via Flickr.com.

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