North Carolina · NC · Time & calendar

North Carolina: Does the state observe daylight saving time?

Observes DST

North Carolina observes daylight saving time and has not enacted a law to change it.

North Carolina has no state statute on daylight saving time, so the federal Uniform Time Act applies. Bills for year-round daylight saving time have passed the House in some years, and in 2025 there were bills for both year-round daylight time (Senate Bill 81) and year-round standard time (House Bill 12). None became law.

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What the law says

DST is not observed in Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and the state of Arizona (with the exception of the Navajo Indian Reservation, which does observe DST).

NIST, Daylight Saving Time (DST)

Sources

NIST, Daylight Saving Time (DST) Official · nist.gov
15 U.S.C. 260a (Uniform Time Act, daylight saving time) Mirror of official text · law.cornell.edu
N.C. General Assembly, 2025 Senate Bill 81 (NC Time Zone/Observe DST All Year), status Official · ncleg.gov
N.C. General Assembly, 2025 House Bill 12 (Observe Standard Time All Year), status Official · ncleg.gov
NCSL, Daylight Saving Time State Legislation Secondary · ncsl.org
U.S. Department of Transportation: Daylight Saving Time Official · transportation.gov

Confirm with the state

Agency: North Carolina General Assembly
Phone: (919) 733-4111
Website: ncleg.gov

How bordering states compare

Georgia Observes DST, law to go year-roundGeorgia observes daylight saving time, but a 2021 law would keep it on daylight time all year if Congress allows.
South Carolina Observes DST, law to go year-roundSouth Carolina observes daylight saving time; a 2020 law makes it year-round if Congress allows.
Tennessee Observes DST, law to go year-roundTennessee observes daylight saving time and has a 2019 law to stay on it all year once Congress allows it.
Virginia Observes DSTVirginia observes daylight saving time under federal law and has not enacted a law to change that.

Last verified Oct 21, 2026 · Confidence: Medium · How we research · Report an error

Medium confidence: an official source covers this by category or definition, so the answer is an inference. The details above say what was inferred.

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