I finally got around to submitting my Brief in Support of the Central Time Zone for White County Specifically and Indiana Generally to the United States Department of Transportation. I provided an overview discussing SEA 127 and Governor Daniels deficient submission to the USDOT. I provided a summary of the law, citing 15 USC 261 which gives the Secretary of Transporation broad discretion with respect to time zones and does not confine him to looking at “convenience of commerce” issues. In fact, I argue, the law seems to urge regard for distance from Greenwich as an important factor alongside convenience of commerce. Neither is dispositive. I also cited to Time Life Broadcasting v. Boyd, 289 F. Supp 219 (D.C. 1968) which provides a nice description of prior proceedings in Indiana and a map of the time zones prior to 1968. The shift to the Eastern Time Zone in 1968 actually appears to have begun when the Governor petitioned to have the entire state on Central time but reached a compromise where the state was technically on Eastern Standard Time, but because of a dispensation to ignore Daylight Saving Time, was functionally on Central Daylight Time.
Then I put forth the geographic arguments and the economic arguments, borrowing heavily from what I’ve read from folks like Paul O’Malley, Jeff Sagarin, and John Gaski. I also take a moment to make sure the USDOT is aware of the Chamber’s astroturf campaign. Enjoy.
Update Here is the pdf version at the USDOT docket website.
Other submissions I noticed:
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