It seems a good time to reiterate my proposal for Daylight Savings time. Let's move the clocks forward at 4pm on Friday afternoon. People who for til 5pm don't get all that much done the last hour on Fridays. Those who must have their employees there that hour, can pay them overtime for the last hour.
Here are two old posts on this topic. This first one is from the 2010 legislative session: HB 19: To End Daylight Savings Time
The second one was seven months later, Daylight Savings Time: Alaska's Failed Legislation to End it.
But with Anchorage gaining almost 6 minutes of sun a day now, and over a week of bright sun and blue skies, no one here is complaining about the daylight.
As long as I'm on this topic, I'd note my peeve with people who report the weather saying things like, "We'll gain 5 minutes and 44 seconds of daylight today" when in fact the twilights, particularly on clear days, last well beyond sunrise and sunset. Unlike, say, Hawaii where it gets dark pretty fast after sunset. But the link from Time and Date above, shows a lot more ways than just sunrise and sunset to calculate daylight.
Showing posts with label daylight savings time. Show all posts
Showing posts with label daylight savings time. Show all posts
Saturday, March 11, 2017
Wednesday, March 04, 2015
Eliminating Alaska Daylight Savings Time Deja Vu
Or we could also title this, "The More Things Change, The More They Stay The Same."
Here's the beginning of a front page article in the Alaska Dispatch News today:
Below is a repost of what I wrote March 18, 2010 when I was blogging the Alaska legislature.
There are some differences. Representative Anna Fairclough is now Senator Anna MacKinnon (same person.)
The bill did not pass that year. I was curious whether the bill has been defeated every year since so I called Sen. MacKinnon's office and staff member Erin gave me a brief history of previous bills to end daylight savings time in Alaska.
1999 - 21st Session - HB 4 introduced by Rep. Kohring
2002 - 22nd Session - HB 409 introduced by Rep. Lancaster
2005 - 24th Session - SB 120 and HB 176 introduced Sen. Olson and House State Affairs committee
2009 - 26th Session - HB 19 introduced by Rep. Fairclough
[Note: Each legislative session is two years starting with the newly elected legislature in January of the odd year following the election in the even year. So, HB 19 introduced in 2009 was still in play in the second year of the 26th session (2010) when I reported on it. HB = House Bill, SB = Senate Bill.]
Here is my commentary on daylight savings time in Alaska from a post on the failed legislation in November 2010 on the weekend we were about to fall back.
Here's the beginning of a front page article in the Alaska Dispatch News today:
I've highlighted "originally proposed the bill" because, this year isn't the first year that she's been pushing this bill."Daylight saving time bill springs forward in Alaska Legislature
March 3, 2015JUNEAU — A Senate committee advanced legislation Tuesday that would eliminate daylight saving time in Alaska and allow for consideration of another time zone in the state.
The bill would exempt Alaskans from advancing their clocks each spring. It would also direct the governor to ask the U.S. Department of Transportation to consider moving part or all of Alaska to Pacific time.
Sen. Anna MacKinnon, R-Eagle River, originally proposed the bill to end daylight saving time in Alaska, then introduced the amendment to consider another time zone."
Below is a repost of what I wrote March 18, 2010 when I was blogging the Alaska legislature.
There are some differences. Representative Anna Fairclough is now Senator Anna MacKinnon (same person.)
HB 19 to End Daylight Savings Time
Thursday, March 18, 2010
The other two meetings going on right now are dealing with issues of far greater impact on Alaska I presume. But this is one most Alaskans can understand easily and are impacted by most directly and tangibly.
Here is the table with copies of emails and letters for and against the bill.
[Update: I looked through these and they areall[mostly] dated March 18 and some 17. Actually this stack is misleading. I didn't realize I have one big stack twice. The vote was 62 for HB 19, 18 against, and four had other options, like get the US to change, but not just Alaska.]
Sen. Olson and Sen. Menard listen to phone testimony on the ending daylight savings time in Alaska.
Rep. Anna Fairclough, the bill sponsor, responded to the comments received through the mail, email, and by phone today. She said there were two reasons that have real justification for not changing:
1. People in Southeast Alaska have a real issue because they are basically in Pacific time, so they get less light in the evening while the sun comes up 3am at solstice.
2. The difficulty in coordinating with people outside of Alaska. (I think this was the second one)
Other than these two points, most people prefer getting rid of daylight savings time. A lot of this is about having to change and the disruption that causes with relatively little daylight impact for most Alaskans (further north and west than Southeast.)
Other issue: Why don't we just spring forward and stay on daylight savings time the whole year. There area a couple of issues:
1. Feds, not states, can change time zones.
2. Western Alaska would be even further off of sun time (opposite problem of Southeast.)
Meeting was adjourned just about 5pm with the decision postponed.
The bill did not pass that year. I was curious whether the bill has been defeated every year since so I called Sen. MacKinnon's office and staff member Erin gave me a brief history of previous bills to end daylight savings time in Alaska.
1999 - 21st Session - HB 4 introduced by Rep. Kohring
2002 - 22nd Session - HB 409 introduced by Rep. Lancaster
2005 - 24th Session - SB 120 and HB 176 introduced Sen. Olson and House State Affairs committee
2009 - 26th Session - HB 19 introduced by Rep. Fairclough
[Note: Each legislative session is two years starting with the newly elected legislature in January of the odd year following the election in the even year. So, HB 19 introduced in 2009 was still in play in the second year of the 26th session (2010) when I reported on it. HB = House Bill, SB = Senate Bill.]
Here is my commentary on daylight savings time in Alaska from a post on the failed legislation in November 2010 on the weekend we were about to fall back.
My personal feelings are that in Alaska it probably doesn't matter one way or the other except in Southeast, which is the result of having the state in one time zone. In the winter it's going to be dark and in the summer it's going to be light. And I don't mind getting an extra hour this weekend in the fall. But I hate losing an hour of weekend in the spring.
My tweak to daylight savings would be, in the spring, to make the change (skip ahead one hour) at 4pm on Friday afternoon. Then people at work would get to go home one hour early. Yes, I know there are all sorts of potential economic impacts, but not much work gets done in the last hour of Friday afternoon anyway and people would feel happy to get a free hour and would spend more on entertainment that weekend to offset the loss. (Gross generalization based on gut feeling but absolutely no evidence.)
Saturday, March 08, 2014
Don't Forget To Turn Your Clock Ahead
Timeanddate writes:
Both pieces have lots of information including pros and cons and research links that say DST is beneficial and harmful to energy use and to health.
As long as we have it (doesn't make too much sense in Alaska), I still propose that in the spring, we jump ahead at 4pm on Friday afternoon instead of on the weekend.
The idea of daylight saving time was first conceived by Benjamin Franklin in 1784 during his stay in Paris. He published an essay titled “An Economical Project for Diminishing the Cost of Light” that proposed to economize the use of candles by rising earlier to make use of the morning sunlight.National Geographic adds:
While serving as U.S. ambassador to France in Paris, Franklin wrote of being awakened at 6 a.m. and realizing, to his surprise, that the sun rose far earlier than he usually did. Imagine the resources that might be saved if he and others rose before noon and burned less midnight oil, Franklin, tongue half in cheek, wrote to a newspaper.
"Franklin seriously realized it would be beneficial to make better use of daylight, but he didn't really know how to implement it," Prerau said. . .
It wasn't until World War I that daylight savings were realized on a grand scale. Germany was the first state to adopt the time changes, to reduce artificial lighting and thereby save coal for the war effort. Friends and foes soon followed suit. In the U.S. a federal law standardized the yearly start and end of daylight saving time in 1918—for the states that chose to observe it.
Both pieces have lots of information including pros and cons and research links that say DST is beneficial and harmful to energy use and to health.
As long as we have it (doesn't make too much sense in Alaska), I still propose that in the spring, we jump ahead at 4pm on Friday afternoon instead of on the weekend.
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Blog Contest: How many dandelions are in the bag?
Be the first to get the right answer and win a prize. Details below.
This contest arose when I saw the yellow flowers in the lawn. Pick them now, this voice said, or they will multiply beyond counting. OK, I’ll pick 200 today and maybe get my wife to do another 200 and keep that pace until they are gone. [I know, purists dig the whole plant out of the ground, including the long deep roots. That’s just not going to happen. I can do the minimum which is stop the seeds from forming and blowing all over.]
So I got a bag and started picking and counting. I stopped at one point and took the picture below just to have a record of what I’d done - besides the bag.
As I counted toward my 200, my mind wandered to the recent election and the problem of counting the ballots. Would readers challenge my count? How could I prove how many dandelions were in the bag? And I found myself picking not just yellow dandelions, but also dandelion buds that hadn’t opened yet, and dandelion flowers that had finished, but not yet turned to seedballs. Do all three all count? In the ultmate number in the bag?
If someone challenged me, could we do a recount? Maybe I should build a dandelion counting machine. I could put them in the machine to verify the handcount.
Was it necessary to count at all? Couldn’t I use the picture of a patch of dandelions and see how many dandelions were in six square feet of lawn? We could, but not every six square foot patch had the same number of dandelions.
How important is it to be exact? Well, if I have a contest and four people were within five or six dandelions from the exact number, surely they would want to be sure that the person who was the closest won. Unless, of course, they were close but not the closest. Then a miscount might make them the winner.
In the recent election, assuming that no voting machines were hijacked, the margins of victory were high enough that miscounting by three or four, even 20 votes, wouldn’t have mattered. It was close enough to know who won. But what happens when the elections are closer? Where three votes off would change the winner?
And because we have machines, we need to do hand counts regularly because that seems to be the only way to be assured that none of the machines were hijacked. I tend to think this didn’t happen in this election, but I also have no patience with people who dismiss this possibility completely. It’s more than a theoretical possibility. It’s happened in other locations using the same machines. If you haven’t watched the film Hacking Democracy, (it's free online at the link) I think you have no standing to dispute me on this. If you have watched it, and still think it’s impossible or even unlikely, then tell me why. People are spending billions of dollars to get their favored candidates elected. Why wouldn’t they be likely to try to tamper with the cards in the voting machines?
CONTEST DETAILS
OK, back to the important things. How many dandelions are in the bag?
How to participate:
1. Post your answers in the comment section. You can post anonymously if you like, but you need to sign a name (any name you like) and city (real city) in the comments.
2. Email me to let me know that you made a comment, the number of dandelions, the name you used, and the city.
Deadline: Thursday, May 31, 2012 5pm Alaska Daylight Savings Time.
Prize:
For people near Anchorage - I'll take you to dinner at the Thai Kitchen. (People in the Seattle or LA areas, we can possibly work a dinner somewhere in late June.)
For others: I’ll make and send you five hand made greeting cards using images you choose from this blog. (I have most, but not all, in high enough resolution to do this.)
Verification/Security:
Although this contest has relatively minor consequences, it seems important, even here, to have reasonable security measures, so that you can be assured the contest is not rigged in any way. Therefore, I have emailed the actual number to an Anchorage expert on plant biology. I won't name her now so people do not pester her for the number (which she wouldn't give anyway.)
Additional notes:
1. I went well beyond 200.
2. There will be no recount of the dandelions, but you can have the bag of dandelions if you pick it up or pay for shipping.
Sunday, November 06, 2011
Usufruct - A Term We Should All Know
Too many things are crashing together. Brent Scarpo week is coming up and as a Healing Racism Steering Committee member I'll be involved with that during the week. I want to get more video of him up, but I'll have live stuff probably soon and won't need to use the leftover skype video. And my book club is meeting Monday night putting me in a conflict with Brent's Monday night talk.
It's especially vexing since I really like the book we're reading - Charles Wohlforth's The Fate Of Nature. And Wohlforth is scheduled to be there. Oh dilemmas. And so I'm racing to finish it today and tomorrow. It's an amazing book, using Alaska as a case study to explore the BIG ISSUES - the nature of human beings (cooperative or competitive?) and is our nature compatible with the survival of the world's ecosystem? He takes us to unexpected places and introduces us to interesting people and their concepts and then ties them all together - a lot of time in Prince William Sound from the visit of Captain Cook, the Russians, Cordova as it has changed from the time of the Kennicott Mine. And Chenega from old village days, through its destruction during the 1964 earthquake, to the creation of Chugach Alaska after the passage of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA). That's just a few of the many things covered. And they all help illustrate a long array of ideas and theories.
There's also a section on early environmentalists nationally and how they impacted Alaska - particularly Gifford Pinchot, who was a major force in creating Chugach National Forest. But before Pinchot, there was George Perkins Marsh who published, in 1864, The Earth as Modified by Human Action. Wohlforth writes:
Instead of reading more yesterday, I was at the CCL meeting and then at the One People, One Earth meeting - both discussing man's impact on the earth's ecosystem. Both, in their own ways, dealing with the idea usufruct. I also saw Penny Arcade's show at Out North last night. More on that later, but briefly, it's the adults only version of what Brent Scarpo will be doing this week. Penny Arcade, who was part of Andy Warhol's crowd, will perform for a couple more weekends. But I've got to get back to reading, and there's a driveway to shovel, and a few other things to distract me. But just lying in bed this morning reading and reading was a real pleasure. And the end of daylight savings time gave me an extra hour.
There's also a section on early environmentalists nationally and how they impacted Alaska - particularly Gifford Pinchot, who was a major force in creating Chugach National Forest. But before Pinchot, there was George Perkins Marsh who published, in 1864, The Earth as Modified by Human Action. Wohlforth writes:
"He explained the fragility of ecosystems, the special qualities of old-growth forest, the potential to permanently damage soil, wetlands, rivers, and ocean, and he argued that environmental abuse similar to that rampant in the United States had brought about the collapse of ancient civilizations around the Mediterranean Sea. Marsh used a legal term to define humanity's proper relationship to the earth: usufruct, which means a loan for use only, with the obligation to leave the borrowed item as it was found." (p. 143)(emphasis added)
Instead of reading more yesterday, I was at the CCL meeting and then at the One People, One Earth meeting - both discussing man's impact on the earth's ecosystem. Both, in their own ways, dealing with the idea usufruct. I also saw Penny Arcade's show at Out North last night. More on that later, but briefly, it's the adults only version of what Brent Scarpo will be doing this week. Penny Arcade, who was part of Andy Warhol's crowd, will perform for a couple more weekends. But I've got to get back to reading, and there's a driveway to shovel, and a few other things to distract me. But just lying in bed this morning reading and reading was a real pleasure. And the end of daylight savings time gave me an extra hour.
Saturday, January 15, 2011
More Interesting Google Searches
It used to be that sitemeter would take me to the google page the searcher found and I could see the hits and the other sites the searcher found as well. It also hightlighted the words in each post that were in the search terms. But now I just get sent to the page - or photo if it's an image search - they found. So I have less information about why or how they got here.
But here are some search terms - mostly google - that got people here, my thoughts, and where google delivered them.
we seen a pigeon egg on the floor what should wed do? - This Manchester searcher got to post on pigeon eggs in a nest in Juneau that had been blocked off, but probably didn't answer the question. Clearly though, one pigeon egg is too small for an omelet.
moral mushrooms - Got them to an archived post on mushrooms, but I'm not sure how moral any of them were. And there wasn't even a morel among them.
colorado house eating tiny insects - OK, so does this mean a Colorado house that is eating tiny insects? Or a house-eating tiny insects? I just got it. Termites. In any case, he got to my post on fruit flies or fungus gnats.
boat powered by a chainsaw The Slovakian searcher got to a post on the Anchorage Weekend Market which included a picture of chainsaw art. But I think using a chain saw to power a boat is much more creative. (A Canadian has a YouTube up of this 4 foot R/C motor boat powered by a chain saw if you really need to see one, but don't go here unless you're really, really interested.)
how compatible are 5 jan 1982 and 19 nov 1990 born - Eight years apart. Not too bad. But this Australian inquiry didn't get the answer on my post on people born in 1910.
bill allen alaska democrat - Maybe this is totally innocent, but I can't help conjuring up an image of Southern Conservatives (this came from Rocky Mount, North Carolina) turning Allen into a Democrat to show how depraved we are. There's nothing in my post about the sex charges against Allen being dropped that mentions either Republicans or Democrats. The ADN story the post links to does say,
ufo files denali state park 2009 - I didn't know Denali State Park was a UFO hotspot. My pictures were from June this year so it never got dark. But why shouldn't UFO's come by in the day too? I should have been looking up instead of down at the flowers. In any case, Google got the searcher to an archive page that came up blank when I searched it for "denali'.
what is jury meandering - Is this where the jury gets bored and they start wandering around the courtroom? This got to a post titled 'meandering' but nothing with a jury in it. Was this supposed to be jury tampering? Jerrymandering?
art of cloud scavenging women - This Norwegian searcher got to this picture of a lost cloud poster.
unnoticeable earth quack -There's a lot of these characters walking around, but you can't tell since many look like honest citizens. Anyway, this person got to a post on a noticeable earthquake in Anchorage.
what do americans call rapeseed oil - Got to a post titled, can you guess? What Do Americans Call Rapeseed? This ones from Prescot, Lancashire, UK. Sometimes people get a bulls eye.
what do americans call sex - another Brit got to the same place.
headline sept 2008 bailout -got this image from Sept. 2008.
is the family doomed - Someone in Cambridge, MA wanted to know and got to my affirmative post - The Family is Doomed.
in idaho about how many people know what a blog is - The only logical conclusion they can come to from the post they got is: none. This was called Does Idaho Exist - Why Everyone Should Study Philosophy? And the answer was no.
on 12th near commercial drive vancouver tree with red leaves and white seeds flowers in fall - Wow, someone is googling to find out about a specific tree in downtown Vancouver. And the person got this picture, which looks like red leaves, but I think it was a flower from tree at Wat Pa Dara Phirom north of Chiang Mai. The picture, in this case, has three of the words in the search terms - red tree flower. And they probably caught Vancouver from one of the archived titles.
wrapping japanese - I knew immediately what post they got to - one on Japanese cloth gift wrapping techniques. And I assume that is what they were looking for. But the image of someone wrapping up a Japanese man did flash through my head. And then I saw on stage a group of Japanese rappers. I'll assume they found what they were looking for.
i was born in alaska can i get the permanent fund money - This googler from a computer in O'Fallon, Illinois wants in on Alaska's oil money. Being born here isn't enough. You have to live here. Mostly. She got to a post about filing for an application.
opera house in oslo frozen ice - OK, so googling is something you do in the privacy of your own computer and you don't have to be perfect. But 'frozen ice'? As opposed to the unfrozen kind? Let's give the person a break. It was from Oakland, California where they never see ice outside the freezer. The person got to my post on the Norwegian Carl Nesjar's ice sculpture in Anchorage. (I better check and see if I wrote 'frozen ice.' Whew! I didn't.)
killer bugs a power stamp nasty thorms and im using them - This came from a computer in Tel Aviv. I'm sure it made sense to the searcher. He got to a post that did have some nasty thorns, but I'm not sure about the rest of what he was looking for.
if u were born in 1909 in diead in 1920 how long ago was that - This one leaves me pretty much speechless. But Google got this person to a post about people asking how old they would be if they had been born in 1909.
what is alaska's daylight in years - I don't think this is like "what is Alaska's size in square miles." Maybe someone else can deconstruct what this person wanted to know. This surfer got to a page on Alaska's failed bill to end daylight savings time. Another hint from sitemeter - the location is listed as City: APO State: Armed Forces Pacific. Maybe it's a soldier who was just assigned to Alaska, or considering Alaska, as a next posting.
caution paradigm invisible - This is just an interesting thought. I'd like to talk to this searcher to see what the person was thinking. The result may or may not have been helpful:
Who Cut Off That Invisible Hand: Paradigm Outsiders Needed in Financial Crisis
sex drive shoe tree - some search terms exhaust even my fairly flexible imagination. Google directed this person to an archive page of posts in August 2008. There are three instances of the word drive. There's a 'shoe tree', but no sex.
But here are some search terms - mostly google - that got people here, my thoughts, and where google delivered them.
we seen a pigeon egg on the floor what should wed do? - This Manchester searcher got to post on pigeon eggs in a nest in Juneau that had been blocked off, but probably didn't answer the question. Clearly though, one pigeon egg is too small for an omelet.
moral mushrooms - Got them to an archived post on mushrooms, but I'm not sure how moral any of them were. And there wasn't even a morel among them.
colorado house eating tiny insects - OK, so does this mean a Colorado house that is eating tiny insects? Or a house-eating tiny insects? I just got it. Termites. In any case, he got to my post on fruit flies or fungus gnats.
boat powered by a chainsaw The Slovakian searcher got to a post on the Anchorage Weekend Market which included a picture of chainsaw art. But I think using a chain saw to power a boat is much more creative. (A Canadian has a YouTube up of this 4 foot R/C motor boat powered by a chain saw if you really need to see one, but don't go here unless you're really, really interested.)
how compatible are 5 jan 1982 and 19 nov 1990 born - Eight years apart. Not too bad. But this Australian inquiry didn't get the answer on my post on people born in 1910.
bill allen alaska democrat - Maybe this is totally innocent, but I can't help conjuring up an image of Southern Conservatives (this came from Rocky Mount, North Carolina) turning Allen into a Democrat to show how depraved we are. There's nothing in my post about the sex charges against Allen being dropped that mentions either Republicans or Democrats. The ADN story the post links to does say,
"And he and other officials of Veco Corp. were some the most important sources of campaign contributions for the Alaska Republican Party and its candidates."But the searcher didn't use the link to read the original.
ufo files denali state park 2009 - I didn't know Denali State Park was a UFO hotspot. My pictures were from June this year so it never got dark. But why shouldn't UFO's come by in the day too? I should have been looking up instead of down at the flowers. In any case, Google got the searcher to an archive page that came up blank when I searched it for "denali'.
what is jury meandering - Is this where the jury gets bored and they start wandering around the courtroom? This got to a post titled 'meandering' but nothing with a jury in it. Was this supposed to be jury tampering? Jerrymandering?
art of cloud scavenging women - This Norwegian searcher got to this picture of a lost cloud poster.
unnoticeable earth quack -There's a lot of these characters walking around, but you can't tell since many look like honest citizens. Anyway, this person got to a post on a noticeable earthquake in Anchorage.
what do americans call rapeseed oil - Got to a post titled, can you guess? What Do Americans Call Rapeseed? This ones from Prescot, Lancashire, UK. Sometimes people get a bulls eye.
what do americans call sex - another Brit got to the same place.
headline sept 2008 bailout -got this image from Sept. 2008.
is the family doomed - Someone in Cambridge, MA wanted to know and got to my affirmative post - The Family is Doomed.
in idaho about how many people know what a blog is - The only logical conclusion they can come to from the post they got is: none. This was called Does Idaho Exist - Why Everyone Should Study Philosophy? And the answer was no.
on 12th near commercial drive vancouver tree with red leaves and white seeds flowers in fall - Wow, someone is googling to find out about a specific tree in downtown Vancouver. And the person got this picture, which looks like red leaves, but I think it was a flower from tree at Wat Pa Dara Phirom north of Chiang Mai. The picture, in this case, has three of the words in the search terms - red tree flower. And they probably caught Vancouver from one of the archived titles.
wrapping japanese - I knew immediately what post they got to - one on Japanese cloth gift wrapping techniques. And I assume that is what they were looking for. But the image of someone wrapping up a Japanese man did flash through my head. And then I saw on stage a group of Japanese rappers. I'll assume they found what they were looking for.
i was born in alaska can i get the permanent fund money - This googler from a computer in O'Fallon, Illinois wants in on Alaska's oil money. Being born here isn't enough. You have to live here. Mostly. She got to a post about filing for an application.
opera house in oslo frozen ice - OK, so googling is something you do in the privacy of your own computer and you don't have to be perfect. But 'frozen ice'? As opposed to the unfrozen kind? Let's give the person a break. It was from Oakland, California where they never see ice outside the freezer. The person got to my post on the Norwegian Carl Nesjar's ice sculpture in Anchorage. (I better check and see if I wrote 'frozen ice.' Whew! I didn't.)
killer bugs a power stamp nasty thorms and im using them - This came from a computer in Tel Aviv. I'm sure it made sense to the searcher. He got to a post that did have some nasty thorns, but I'm not sure about the rest of what he was looking for.
if u were born in 1909 in diead in 1920 how long ago was that - This one leaves me pretty much speechless. But Google got this person to a post about people asking how old they would be if they had been born in 1909.
what is alaska's daylight in years - I don't think this is like "what is Alaska's size in square miles." Maybe someone else can deconstruct what this person wanted to know. This surfer got to a page on Alaska's failed bill to end daylight savings time. Another hint from sitemeter - the location is listed as City: APO State: Armed Forces Pacific. Maybe it's a soldier who was just assigned to Alaska, or considering Alaska, as a next posting.
caution paradigm invisible - This is just an interesting thought. I'd like to talk to this searcher to see what the person was thinking. The result may or may not have been helpful:
Who Cut Off That Invisible Hand: Paradigm Outsiders Needed in Financial Crisis
sex drive shoe tree - some search terms exhaust even my fairly flexible imagination. Google directed this person to an archive page of posts in August 2008. There are three instances of the word drive. There's a 'shoe tree', but no sex.
Saturday, November 06, 2010
Daylight Savings Time - Alaska's Failed Legislation to End It
 |
| Anchorage sunrise 11/5/10 at 9:41am - this shot 10:15am |
It wasn't until World War I that daylight savings were realized on a grand scale. Germany was the first state to adopt the time changes, to reduce artificial lighting and thereby save coal for the war effort. Friends and foes soon followed suit.In the U.S. a federal law standardized the yearly start and end of daylight saving time in 1918—for the states that chose to observe it.During World War II the U.S. made daylight saving time mandatory for the whole country, as a way to save wartime resources
Here in Alaska, House Bill (HB) 19 was introduced in the first session of the 26th Alaska Legislature by Eagle River representative Anna Fairclough. But it died.
[Translation: Each legislature meets for two years - the term of a representative (senators have four years). So each Legislature has a first session - year one - and a second session - year two. Alaska became a state in 1959, so by 2009 there had been 25 legislatures of two years for that fifty year span. In 2009, the 26th Legislature began. In 2011, the 27th Legislature will begin its two year run. ]
HB 19 wasn't a very long bill:
CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 19(L&C)[Translation: CS=Committee Substitute, meaning that the original bill has had changes made by one or more of the committees that review the bill and that now stands as the substitute for the original bill. L&C = Labor and Commerce Committee]
01 "An Act exempting the state and its political subdivisions from daylight saving time;
02 and providing for an effective date."
03 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:
04 * Section 1. AS 44.12 is amended by adding a new section to read:
05 Article 5. Standard Time.
06 Sec. 44.12.400. Exemption from daylight saving time. Under 15 U.S.C.
07 260a, this state exempts itself and all of its political subdivisions from observation of
08 advanced time, also known as daylight saving time, between 2:00 a.m. on the second
09 Sunday in March and 2:00 a.m. on the first Sunday in November in each calendar
10 year, and the entire state and all of its political subdivisions shall observe the standard
11 time that is otherwise applicable during that time period.
12 * Sec. 2. This Act takes effect January 1, 2011
I got to one hearing of this bill on March 18, 2010 where the Senators Menard and Olson took phone testimony on this bill and sponsor Fairclough also testified. There was a stack of emails and letters that came in on this bill. At the time I went through them and counted. There were 62 for HB 19, 18 against, and four had other options, like get the US to change, but not just Alaska.]
From my post at that time:
Rep. Anna Fairclough, the bill sponsor, responded to the comments received through the mail, email, and by phone today. She said there were two reasons that have real justification for not changing:
Rep. Fairclough testifying to Sens. Menard and Olson
1. People in Southeast Alaska have a real issue because they are basically in Pacific time, so they get less light in the evening while the sun comes up 3am at solstice.
2. The difficulty in coordinating with people outside of Alaska. (I think this was the second one)
If you have strong feelings about daylight savings time let your legislator know. (That link doesn't reflect this week's election, but most of the incumbents stayed on.)
My personal feelings are that in Alaska it probably doesn't matter one way or the other except in Southeast, which is the result of having the state in one time zone. In the winter it's going to be dark and in the summer it's going to be light. And I don't mind getting an extra hour this weekend in the fall. But I hate losing an hour of weekend in the spring.
My tweak to daylight savings would be, in the spring, to make the change (skip ahead one hour) at 4pm on Friday afternoon. Then people at work would get to go home one hour early. Yes, I know there are all sorts of potential economic impacts, but not much work gets done in the last hour of Friday afternoon anyway and people would feel happy to get a free hour and would spend more on entertainment that weekend to offset the loss. (Gross generalization based on gut feeling but absolutely no evidence.)
So remember tomorrow, you've got an extra hour this weekend. Spend it with your kid(s) or parents.
Thursday, March 18, 2010
HB 19 to End Daylight Savings Time
Here is the table with copies of emails and letters for and against the bill.
[Update: I looked through these and they are all dated March 18 and some 17. Actually this stack is misleading. I didn't realize I have one big stack twice. The vote was 62 for HB 19, 18 against, and four had other options, like get the US to change, but not just Alaska.]
Sen. Olson and Sen. Menard listen to phone testimony on the ending daylight savings time in Alaska.
Rep. Anna Fairclough, the bill sponsor, responded to the comments received through the mail, email, and by phone today. She said there were two reasons that have real justification for not changing:
1. People in Southeast Alaska have a real issue because they are basically in Pacific time, so they get less light in the evening while the sun comes up 3am at solstice.
2. The difficulty in coordinating with people outside of Alaska. (I think this was the second one)
Other than these two points, most people prefer getting rid of daylight savings time. A lot of this is about having to change and the disruption that causes with relatively little daylight impact for most Alaskans (further north and west than Southeast.)
Other issue: Why don't we just spring forward and stay on daylight savings time the whole year. There area a couple of issues:
1. Feds, not states, can change time zones.
2. Western Alaska would be even further off of sun time (opposite problem of Southeast.)
Meeting was adjourned just about 5pm with the decision postponed.
Too Many Places to Be
But I'm here to hear John Katz, an Alaska legend. I'll blog as I go, so excuse the many typos.
Hard to predict, but
1. Attempts to shift costs to states
2. Amount of money coming to Alaska will shrink in real terms, especially considering inflation
3. Federal receipts compared to state money will decrease
This comes from need for the federal government to reduce debt.
Congressional earmarks. Even though percent is quite low, averaging between 1 and 2% or 16 billion out of 1.2 trillion, they get a lot of attention. They're a metaphor. Easier to talk about earmarks than entitlements.
State has seen earmarks as a way to address fed funding sources that don't figure in Alaska's unique circumstances. Even before the lst election we were seeing signals that Congress was going to tighten hold on earmarks. Focus on transparency, sponsors and benefactors of earmarks.
Rules more stringent in House. Republicans have declared moritorium though Young resists. Democrats moratorium on earmarks to private companies.
Senate side different. Congress' duty through control of federal purse, up to Congress to shape federal budget which may include earmarks. In Alaksa context, lst year about 700 earmark requests from Alaskans. This year about 500 = @$3billion. this year reduced in numbers and size. Few over $1million. Those reduced by quarter to half.
Alaska's response:
1. Jawbone more with bureuacrats
3. Federal grants
Last year STate requested 8 and the same this year for about $23 million and they all have strong federal nexus, strong public support, and we can show some other source of money. We see literally dozens of Alaskan mumicipalities and non-profits. They're chaning too. Fewer earmarks, and only one source of funding for a project.
Number of earmarks will reduce over time, but won't go away altogether. Denali Commission. Budget at times has exceeded $100 million at times. Obama admin says it's compatible with their rural policy, but they don't like it being funded by earmarks. Obama reduced it to about $16 million and earmarks are in jeopardy. Suffering from other problems:
1. needs to be reauthorized, not yet
2. unlike Appalachian group, only represents one state
3. others are jealous
State is starting to match some of the expenditures.
Transportation, two sources:
1. AIT funds in FAA. House has acted on that legislation as we speak, Don't expect any big changes for Alaska which comes on formula, though national press has focused on some rural airports
2. Surface transportation leg.
a. earmarks - these unique, draw directly on highway trust fund, advantages to states. In past, earmarks additive to forumula funds, but last time, some earmarks deducted from formula funds. We had trouble with that and we think deductive earmarks detract from p
This law is up to be extended. $20 billion of which AK might get $150 million. Some Congress members want to reauthorize comprehensive legislation. This could be difficult because fund dependent on gas taxes which went down as people drive less. Conflict between donor and donee states. Ak poster child we get $5 for every $ we contribute.
Obama wants to allocate more funds on competitive basis. Disadvantage for less populous states. Rank pedestrian and bike travel with motorized uses.
Military. Everyone knows the strategic import of our bases. Supportive community. Principle disadvantage is high cost of business in Alaska and of fuel and energy. Up til now, military has been immune from budget cuts. This could end after election. Another round of base reallingment and closures coming up. Governor has formed committee for this. When AF didn't place F35 fighter in Alaska in first round, that was a signal to all of us and our concerns about Eilson. We need to be
Medicaid. First or second largest expenditure of most states.
1. FMAP formula - state and fed outlay formula
2. Benefits a state provides and whether feds require enefits to be provided. This is in state of flux. Initial attempt to shift costs to states. Now 50/50. Was 70% fed 30 State. Mitigated for the short term by extra match in stimulus package and likely to be extended to end of calendar year. Also language in health care billl for newly eligible which would be much higher match. States concerned how long that would last. State will continue to lobby for higher rates because state health care so much higher. Tribal health - hard to get handle $200-400 million. So far in tact. But domestic discretionary funds. Have to keep careful eye on them. Fed funds tend to be focused on tribes in Indian country, since Venetie decision, there's little Indian Country in Alaska.
Education. Bulk comes from states and localities. but fed formulas in k-12 are important source of funding. Obama put out 47 page outline of changes he would like to see. Broad spectrum of issues. Formulas:
1. more competition
2. premisted on core academic standards, bench marks, reading, math, etc.
Alaska hasn't yet become invovled in setting national standards. Also concerned about standards that don't relect Alaska's unique circumstances.
Misc. category. Obama's proposed budget. A number of items of significance for AK
1. All subsidies for oil and gas repealed - deliterious for AK
2. Funding for conveyance of land for state of Alaska. Obama recommending 1/3 cut for surveys at BLM. Necessary for land selections. Can retard development.
In conclusion we can do several things:
1. Jawbone with Federal agencies to include funds for Alaska programs in their budget. Getting more adept in competing with agencies. Scrutinizing fed formulas when they come along. Population doesn't help us.
2. Conception of Alaska Statehood Act. In 1959, many Congress were afraid Alaksa would become ward of US. Gave Alaska land with expectation they would become self sufficient. But didn't foresee EPA etc.
3. Federal domain, 60% of land mass of Alaska continues to be owned by feds. We've supported OCS exploration and get OCS revenue sharing.
Conclusion
Can expect significant federal funds, but not as in the past.
I'll post now, and then add as this continues.
4pm:
Wilson: What taxes on oil being repealed?
Katz: 8 in total. I don't know the full spectrum. In total they would wipe out subsidies and incentives the oil industry receives. President's response: These subsidies gerrymander the the energy field by pushing industry in certain areas.
Wilson: We're currently doing in the resources just that - cutting some taxes and adding incentives. Because that has dropped dramatically in last three years.
Katz: You're considering the exact opposite of the Obama administration. Hoping Congress won't support President on this. There'd be a disproportionate effect on Alaska.
Joule: Denali Commission. Didn't quite understand the question.
Katz: Concern for some in congress. Not sure if real concern or rationalization
John Boucher, senior economist with OMB. I've got a printout of his powerpoint, so I'll go check in the other rooms. 4:07pm
[Photo: John Boucher testifying with Reps. Peggy Wilson and Doogan in background.]
4:40pm I checked in on the resources committee meeting. It was crowded.
And then I went off to see what was happening in the Community and Regional Affairs committee to hear the HB 19 bill to end daylight savings time. I'll cover that in the next post.
Boom
We knew nothing about what we were going to see other than it was supposed to be good. For me that's the best way to see something that is good the first time. So I won't say much more, and nothing that will give anything away.
Daylight savings time combined with almost being the equinox has really made a difference in the amount of evening light we have. This was about 7:15 on a cloudy evening.
This is what you walk into.
This is the last weekend. If you miss this, you can only blame yourself.
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