By By ERIN VER BERKMOES / Niles Daily Star
NILES - Area residents have mixed feelings about U.S. Congressman Fred Upton's amendments to the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to extend daylight savings time by two months.
Anita Douglas of Niles said, "It would make things all that more confusing with us only not being on this time for three months a year, and I don't think it would really save us that much money in the end."
Bob Smith of Niles said, "I think it's a great idea, if in the end we all end up saving some money, then it will be worth it."
The amendment also states that the Department of Energy is to do a study on the impact of Daylight Savings Time on the nation's energy consumption.
There is precedent to the amendment that Upton has made, according to news sources after the 1973 Arab Oil Embargo, Congress extended daylight savings time for two years, hoping that it would save additional energy.
The U.S Department of Transportation studied the results of this experiment and found that during 1974 and 1975 daylight time in the months of March and April saved about 10,000 barrels of oil each day, which when added together, is a total of about 600,000 barrels in each of the two years.
According to Upton's website, Upton stated that the extension of Daylight Savings Time, makes sense, with the skyrocketing energy costs.
He also said that we must take advantage of the any opportunity to conserve energy, and saving 10,000 barrels of oil a day during this time, will add up quickly.
Another plus to changing the length of Daylight Savings time is that during the months of March and November there would be more hours of daylight for people to get things done.
Should the amendment Upton is proposing on Daylight Savings Time pass, it would begin on the first Sunday in March and would last until the last Sunday in November.