Seattle was the first city in Washington to adopt daylight saving time in 1933, with Spokane and other cities following suit. However, differences in observance across the state led to inconsistencies in train routes, business and office hours, and ferry routes. Each of the cities shortly returned to standard time. By 1947, approximately 40 percent of Americans observed summer daylight saving with little uniformity. On June 1, 1948, the city of Seattle readopted daylight saving time, along with most western Washington towns and unincorporated areas. In November 1948, Seattle voters approved a referendum to return to daylight saving for the following year and beyond, with other Washington cities following suit. In 1952, Washington voters, with 60 percent of the vote, outlawed daylight saving time. More states began to adopt daylight saving time throughout the 1950s, leaving Washington as an outlier. In 1960, Initiative 210, establishing statewide daylight saving, was passed with just under 52 percent of the vote. Six years later, the U.S. Congress enacted the Uniform Time Act, mandating a schedule for the time change.

In 2019 the Legislature passed SHB 1196, authorizing the state to observe daylight saving time year-round if authorized by the United States Congress. Since then, 19 states have passed legislation or resolutions supporting year-round daylight saving time. To date, the U.S. Congress has not amended federal law to authorize state observance of daylight saving time year-round.

The bill as referred to committee not considered.

The state of Washington will observe Pacific Standard Time year-round beginning on November 4, 2024. If the U.S. Congress authorizes the observance of daylight saving time year round, the state will do so.