Pacific Time Zone facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Pacific Time Zone |
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Pacific Time Zone
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| UTC offset | |
| PST | UTC−08:00 |
| PDT | UTC−07:00 |
| Current time | |
| 20:04, June 14, 2025 (PT) () | |
| Observance of DST | |
| DST is observed throughout this time zone. | |
The Pacific Time Zone (PT) is a special area that uses the same time. It covers parts of western Canada, the western United States, and western Mexico. When people in this zone are using standard time, they set their clocks back eight hours from Coordinated Universal Time (UTC−08:00).
During daylight saving time, clocks are moved forward one hour. So, the time becomes seven hours behind UTC (UTC−07:00).
In the United States and Canada, this zone is usually called the Pacific Time Zone. When it's standard time (from early November to mid-March), it's called Pacific Standard Time (PST). When it's daylight saving time (from mid-March to early November), it's called Pacific Daylight Time (PDT). In Mexico, this zone is known as the Zona Noroeste, which means Northwest Zone. It follows the same daylight saving schedule as the U.S. and Canada. The biggest city in the Pacific Time Zone is Los Angeles. Its surrounding area is also the largest in this time zone.
The Pacific Time Zone is two hours ahead of the Hawaii–Aleutian Time Zone. It is one hour ahead of the Alaska Time Zone. It is also one hour behind the Mountain Time Zone. It is two hours behind the Central Time Zone. Finally, it is three hours behind the Eastern Time Zone and four hours behind the Atlantic Time Zone.
Contents
Pacific Time in Canada
One Canadian province is split between the Pacific Time Zone and the Mountain Time Zone. This means different parts of the province use different times.
- British Columbia – Most of British Columbia is in the Pacific Time Zone. However, some areas in the southeast (like Golden and Creston) and northeast (like Tumbler Ridge, Fort St. John, and Dawson Creek) use Mountain Time.
The decision about where the time zone border is in British Columbia was made in 1972. People in the northeastern and southeastern areas voted on it. This was because these areas had strong connections to the nearby province of Alberta.
As of September 24, 2020, Yukon changed its time. It officially stopped using daylight saving time. Now, Yukon is always seven hours behind Coordinated Universal Time (UTC−7).
Pacific Time in Mexico
In Mexico, the Zona Noroeste is the area that uses Pacific Time. It includes:
Pacific Time in the United States
Two states in the U.S. are completely within the Pacific Time Zone:
Three other states are split between the Pacific Time Zone and the Mountain Time Zone. This means some parts of these states use Pacific Time, and other parts use Mountain Time.
- Idaho – Ten counties in the northern part of Idaho are in the Pacific Time Zone. This is because they are close to cities in Washington state.
- Nevada – Almost all of Nevada is in the Pacific Time Zone. However, the town of West Wendover has used Mountain Time since 1999. This is because it is very close to Wendover, Utah. Also, a few towns along the Idaho border, like Jackpot and Owyhee, observe Mountain Time.
- Oregon – Most of Oregon is in the Pacific Time Zone. But a large part of Malheur County uses Mountain Time. This change happened in 1923 to help the Oregon Short Line Railroad.
One state is unofficially split between the Pacific Time Zone, the Alaska Time Zone, and the Hawaii–Aleutian Time Zone:
- Alaska – The town of Hyder unofficially uses Pacific Time. This is because it is very close to Stewart, British Columbia in Canada.
Understanding Daylight Saving Time
Before 2007, daylight saving time used to start on the first Sunday in April. Clocks would jump from 2 AM to 3 AM. It would end on the last Sunday in October, when clocks moved back from 2 AM to 1 AM.
The United States Congress passed a law called the Energy Policy Act of 2005. This law changed the dates for daylight saving time. Now, clocks move forward on the second Sunday in March. They move back on the first Sunday in November.
Like other Canadian provinces that use daylight time, British Columbia adopted these new dates in April 2006. The changes officially started in March 2007, at the same time as the U.S. Some Mexican states, including Baja California, also started using these new dates in 2010. Before that, cities near the Mexico–United States border had a one-hour time difference for two months each year.
In recent years, many U.S. states have wanted to stop changing clocks twice a year. They want to use either standard time or daylight time all year round. In 2018, 59 percent of voters in California approved a plan. This plan would let their lawmakers choose to use daylight time all year. But this would need approval from the U.S. Congress.
In May 2019, the Washington State Legislature passed a bill. This bill would move the state to permanent daylight time, if Congress agrees. The Oregon Legislative Assembly passed a similar bill a month later. However, California's attempt to make this change did not pass. The government of British Columbia said in 2019 that they would follow the U.S. states. This way, they could keep the time zone unified. In 2020, Idaho passed a law to allow permanent daylight time for its Pacific Time Zone areas.
A bill called the Sunshine Protection Act was introduced in Congress several times. It passed in the U.S. Senate in 2022. But the same bill did not pass in the House of Representatives. So, the time changes still happen.
Images for kids
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A friendly robot to guide you!
See also
- Effects of time zones on North American broadcasting
In Spanish: Tiempo del Pacífico para niños
