. . 

Honorable Preston Smith Opinion No. C-729 

Lieutenant Governor 

Austin, Texas Re: Construction of Article 

23a, Vernon's Civil Statutes, related to uniform 

system of time In view of 

the enactment of Public 

Law 89-387 Uniform Time 

Dear Governor Smith: Act of 1966. 

Your request for an opinion on the above subject 

matter reads as follows: 

"The State of Texas by the enactment of Art. 23a, 

V. A. C. S., (Acts 1947, 50th Legislature, Page 723, 

Chapter 359, Sec. l), adopted central standard time 

as official. 

"The 89th Congress, by the enactment of Public 

Law 89-387 on April 13, 1966, amended the Federal 

laws pertaining to time, and established an official 

time applicable throughout the United States and its 

territories, with the exception that any State may 

by law exempt itself from the provisions of the subsection providing for the advancement of time. The 

Federal amendment is to be effective on April 1, 1967, 

and there has been some inquiry as to whether or not 

our State law has been nullified by the later Federal 

legislation. 

"Will you please take this 

deration and advise me, in view 

and Federal law, whether or not 

matter under consiof both our State 

our State law is 

still applicable or if it will be necessary that 

we re-enact our 8tate statute in order to retain 

central standard as the official time for the State 

of Texas?" 

Article 23a Vernon's Civil Statutes, enacted in 

1947, provides as follows: 

"The standard time throughout this state shall 

be that of the ninetieth (90th) meridian of Ion@- 

tude west from Greenwich, commonly known as 'central 

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Hon. Preston Smith, page 2 (C-729 ) 

standard time'; provided, however, that regions of 

this State using Mountain Standard Time shall continue to use that time as their official standard 

time. In all statutes orders rules and regulations either now in f&ce or hereaft& to be 

promulgated relating to the time within which any 

Act shall 0; shall not be performed by any person, 

it shall be understood and intended that the time 

referred to is the standard time as provided for 

in$his Article, unless otherwise expressly providThe pertinent provi&.ons of Public Law 89-387; 80 

Stat. 107, known as the Uniform Time Act of 1966, reads as 

follows: 

"Sec. 3. (a) During the period commenaing 

at 2 o'clock antemeridian on the last Sunday of 

April of each year and ending at 2 o'clock antemeridian on the last Sunday of October of each 

year, the standard time of each zone established 

by the Act of March 19, 1918 (15 U.S.C. 261-264), 

as modified by the Act of March 4, 1921 (15 U.S.C. 

265), shall be advanced one hour and such time as 

so advanced shall for the purposes of such Act of 

March 19, 1918 as so modified, be the standard 

time of such z&e during such period; except that 

any State may by law exempt itself from the provisions of this subsection providing for the advancement of time but only if such law provides 

that the entire S&ate (including all political 

subdivisions thereof) shall observe the standard 

time otherwise applicable under such Act of March 

19, 1918, as so modified, during such period. 

"(b) It is hereby declared that it is the 

express intent of Congress by this section to 

supersede any and all laws of the States or political subdivisions thereof insofar as they may 

now or hereafter provide for advances in time 

,or changeover dates different from those specified in this section. 

"(c) For any violation of the provisions of 

this section the Interstate Commerce Commission 

or its duly authorized agent may apply to the 

district court of the United States for the district in which such violation occurs for the 

enforcement of this section; and such court shall 

have jurisdiction to enforce obedience thereto by 

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. 

Hon. Preston Smith, page 3 

writ of injunction or 

(c-729 1 

by other process mandatory . _ .J _ 

or otherwise, restraining against rurther violations 

of this section and enjoining obedience thereto. 

"Sec. 4. (a) The first section of the Act of 

March 19, 1918, as amended (15 U.S.C. 261), is 

amended to read as follows: 

"'That for the purpose of establishing the standard time of the United States, the territory of 

the United States shall be divided into eight zones 

in the manner provided in this section. Except as 

provided in Section 3 (a) of the Uniform Time Act 

of 1966. the standard time of the first zone shall 

be based on the mean solar time of the sixtieth 

degree of longitude west from Greenwich; that of 

the second zone on the seventy-fifth degree; that 

of the third zone on the ninetieth degree; thr 

of the fourth zone on the one hundred and fifth 

degree; that of the fifth zone on the one hundred 

and twentieth degree: that of the sixth zone on 

the one hundred and thirty-fifth degree: that of 

the seventh zone on the one hundred and fiftieth 

degree; and that of the eigm zone on the one 

hundred and sixty-fifth degree. The limits of 

each zone shall be defined by an order of the 

Interstate Commerce Commission, having regard 

for the convenience of commerce and the existing junction points and division points of 

common carriers engaged in interstate or foreign 

commerce, and any such order may be modified 

from time to time. As used in this Act, the 

term "interstate or foreign commercel' means commerce between a State, the District of Columbia, 

the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or any possession of the United States and any place outside 

thereof.' 

"(c) Section 4 of such Act is amended to read as 

follows: 

"'Sec. 4. The standard time of the first 

zone shall be known and designated as Atlantic 

standard time; that of the second zone shall be 

known and designated as eastern standard time; 

that of the third zone shall be known and designated as central standard time; that of the 

fourth zone shall be known and designated as 

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Hon. Preston Smith, page 4 (C-729 ) 

mountain standard time; that of the fifth zone 

shall be known and designated as Pacific standard time; that of the sixth zone shall be 

known and designated as Yukon standard time; 

that of the seventh zone shall be known and 

designated as Alaska-Hawaii standard time; 

and that of the eighth zone shall be known 

and designated as Bering standard time.' 

I, 

. . . 

“Sec. 6. This Act shall take effect on 

April 1, 1967; "oughout) . . . . 

Since Congress by the enactment of Public Law 89- 

387 now requires the observance of uniform time, it has preempted the field concerning uniform time, and the provisions 

of Public Law 89-387, above quoted, will prevail over State 

legislation if a conflict exists. Section 4 states that the 

limits of each zone shall be defined by an order of the Interstate Commerce Commission rather than the Act itself prescribing the territorial limits of the eight zones named therein. 

Therefore, on April 1, 1967, (the effective date of the Act), 

the time zone or time zones in which the territorial limits 

of the State of Texas is placed will be determined by the 

order of the Interstate Commerce Commission defining the 

limits of each zone rather than the Act entitled: An Act 

to transfer the Panhandle and Plain section of Texas and 

Oklahoma to the United States standard central time zone; 

aproved March 4, 1921, (15 U.S.C. 265). Thus, Section 3(a), 

providing for the advancement of time, does not determine 

the territorial limits of each zone; rather, it merely 

provides for the advancement of time within each zone during 

specified portions of the year, 

Under the provisions of Section 3(a), any state is 

pern&!t.ted,to exempt itself from the provisions of Section 3(a) 

providing for the advancement of time, but only if the entire 

state shall observe the standard time otherwise applicable. 

Since Article 23a Vernon's Civil Statutes does not require 

the entire State to observe the standard time otherwise 

applicable under Public Law 89-387, it will be necessary to 

amend Article 23a in order for the State of Texas to exempt 

itself from the provisions of Section 3(a) of the Uniform 

Time Act of 1966. 

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Hon. Preston Smith, page 5 (C- 729) 

SUMMARY 

In order for the State of Texas to exempt itself from the provisions of Section 3 of Public 

Law 89-387 providing for the advancement of time 

on the last Sunday of April of each year and ending on the last Sunday of October of each year, 

it is necessary to amend Article 23a, Vernon's 

Civil Statutes. 

Very truly yours, 

WAGGONER CARR 

Attorney General 

JR:mh:dh 

APPROVED: 

OPINION COMMITTEE 

W. 0. Shultz, Chairman 

Pat Bailey 

James McCoy 

Phillip Crawford 

Marvin Sentell 

APPROVED FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL 

By: T. B. Wright 

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