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Atlantic Time Zone
Time zone (UTC−04:00)

The Atlantic Time Zone observes Atlantic Standard Time (AST), which is UTC−04:00, by subtracting four hours from UTC. Some areas switch to Atlantic Daylight Time (ADT) during daylight saving time, shifting clocks to UTC−03:00. This time is based on the mean solar time of the 60th meridian west. In Canada, provinces like New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island use AST, while parts of Quebec also observe it. The continental U.S. does not use Atlantic Time, but territories such as Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands do. Official changes require approval from the U.S. Department of Transportation and Congress. The National Hurricane Center uses AST in storm advisories for the Caribbean region.

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Areas covered

Caribbean

North America

Additional local areas

U.S. states considering a change to Atlantic Standard Time

All six of the New England states in the northeastern U.S., currently in the Eastern Time Zone (with daylight saving time), have considered legislation to shift to UTC−04:00, equivalent to Atlantic Standard Time (with no observance of daylight saving time) or Eastern Daylight Time. Virtually all of this region is west of the theoretical western border of the zone at 67.5°W; only a small part of Maine lies east of that meridian. A Massachusetts commission concluded in 2017 that the benefits of changing to Atlantic Standard Time year-round would outweigh the disadvantages, provided that a majority of northeastern states make the same change.5 In May 2017, the Maine Senate approved a change to AST, on the condition that there would be a referendum, and that Massachusetts and New Hampshire decided to make the same switch.6 Also in 2017, the New Hampshire House of Representatives approved a bill in favor of a regional change, but this was voted down by the state's Senate.7 Similar bills have been put forward in Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Vermont.89

In 2018, Florida enacted into law the "Sunshine Protection Act", under which the state would observe daylight saving time year-round. Most of the state would permanently keep Eastern Daylight Time, which is equivalent to Atlantic Standard Time; the state's panhandle region would move to year-round Central Daylight Time.1011 However, the change cannot take effect until it is passed into federal law by the United States Congress.12

On March 15, 2022, the United States Senate voted unanimously to advance a federal version of the "Sunshine Protection" legislation from Florida, also called the "Sunshine Protection Act", to the United States House of Representatives;13 the bill was not brought to a vote in the House.14 A similar bill was introduced in the Senate in 2023.15

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Atlantic Time Zone (Americas).

References

  1. "CHAPTER T-6 – Time Definition Act" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-12-07. Retrieved 2012-09-11. https://web.archive.org/web/20081207171756/http://www.gnb.ca/0062/PDF-acts/t-06.pdf ↩

  2. "Time Definition Act". Archived from the original on 5 June 2008. Retrieved 2008-06-02. http://www.gov.ns.ca/legislature/legc/statutes/timedefn.htm ↩

  3. "RSNL1990 CHAPTER S-23 – STANDARD TIME ACT". Retrieved 2007-11-16. http://www.assembly.nl.ca/legislation/sr/statutes/s23.htm ↩

  4. "Advisories". National Hurricane Center. https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/ ↩

  5. "Commission: Massachusetts Should Change Time Zones, But Not On Its Own". November 1, 2017. Retrieved March 15, 2018. http://boston.cbslocal.com/2017/11/01/massachusetts-time-zone-change-daylight-saving/ ↩

  6. "Maine Considers Atlantic Standard Time". www.timeanddate.com. Retrieved March 15, 2018. https://www.timeanddate.com/news/time/maine-ast.html ↩

  7. "Senate votes down push to switch N.H.'s time zone". May 11, 2017. Retrieved March 15, 2018. http://www.concordmonitor.com/time-zone-change-atlantic-9808198 ↩

  8. "Maine Considers Atlantic Standard Time". www.timeanddate.com. Retrieved March 15, 2018. https://www.timeanddate.com/news/time/maine-ast.html ↩

  9. Haigh, Susan (2019-01-15). "Connecticut bill is latest calling for time zone change". Providence Journal. Retrieved 2019-09-10. In Vermont, Democrat Rep. Samuel Young this year has submitted legislation that would establish year-round Eastern daylight saving time. https://www.providencejournal.com/news/20190115/connecticut-bill-is-latest-calling-for-time-zone-change ↩

  10. "Should Florida keep Daylight Saving Time all year? It could happen". miamiherald. Retrieved 2019-03-12. https://www.miamiherald.com/news/state/florida/article196453714.html ↩

  11. Lemongello, Steven. "Florida's year-round daylight saving time law on hold in Congress". OrlandoSentinel.com. Retrieved 2019-03-12. https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/politics/political-pulse/os-daylight-saving-law-20180703-story.html ↩

  12. Lemongello, Steven. "Florida's year-round daylight saving time law on hold in Congress". OrlandoSentinel.com. Retrieved 2019-03-12. https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/politics/political-pulse/os-daylight-saving-law-20180703-story.html ↩

  13. Palya, Ashley (2022-03-15). "Turning Back Clocks A Thing Of The Past? Senate Passes Sunshine Protection Act". International Business Times. Retrieved 2022-03-17. https://www.ibtimes.com/turning-back-clocks-thing-past-senate-passes-sunshine-protection-act-3438504 ↩

  14. Schnell, Mychael (July 25, 2022). "Permanent daylight saving time hits brick wall in House". The Hill. https://thehill.com/homenews/house/3571007-permanent-daylight-saving-time-hits-brick-wall-in-house/ ↩

  15. Bink, Addy (March 2, 2023). "Daylight saving time: New bill could stop the clocks from changing". The Hill. https://thehill.com/homenews/nexstar_media_wire/3880009-bill-to-make-daylight-saving-time-permanent-reintroduced-in-congress/ ↩