Lower house backs plan for Argentina to change time zone in Winter

Lawmakers in the lower house have backed a proposal that would see Argentina change its time zone during Winter.

After a lengthy debate on Wednesday, the Chamber of Deputies voted 151 in favour, 66 against a bill presented by Mendoza lawmaker Julio Cobos (Unión Cívica Radical, UCR) that seeks to change Argentina’s time zone during the winter so that the sun rises earlier, with the aim of saving energy. 

Eight lawmakers abstained. The proposal must now go to the Senate, which will decide whether to approve the bill as is or to introduce amendments.

If approved, the change would align national time with more hours of sunlight and reduce electricity consumption needed for artificial light, say the bill’s backers.

At present, the official time in Argentina is set at GMT -3. Under the new initiative, the country would adopt the time zone corresponding to GMT -4, as established by the International Time Zone System.

In parallel, the bill also allows for a return to GMT -3 during the summer months, followed by a reversion to the new time zone in line with the new regulations.

“Argentina currently operates on official time (GMT -3), which is out of sync with the time zone we actually fall into (GMT -4), and this causes several problems. That’s why I introduced a bill to modify the official time across the country and bring it in line with the correct time zone,” said Cobos in a post on the X social network.

He went on to explain that “Argentina lies almost entirely within the GMT -4 time zone, with only the Andean region falling within GMT-5,” and added: “Nonetheless, we use GMT -3. Additionally, parts of Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia, Venezuela and Chile are currently on GMT -4.”

Some experts argue that the current time zone can have a negative impact on health and physical performance, affecting mood and daily life.

The bill states that the winter period shall begin on the first Sunday of April at midnight; and the summer period on the first Sunday of September each year at midnight.

–TIMES/NA