Lofgren Reintroduces Federal Legislation to Examine School Start Times

With Summer Break in Full Swing, Lofgren Looks Ahead to School-Year Mornings

WASHINGTON, DC - Today, U.S. Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren (CA-18) reintroduced the ZZZ's to A's Act to study the relationship between school start times and adolescent health and academic performance. First introduced by Lofgren in 1998, the legislation would direct the U.S. Department of Education to conduct an official study that reviews the existing scientific evidence, compares student health and performance across districts with different schedules, and evaluates factors that impact school start times. The Department would also provide recommendations and policy guidance to best support the physical and mental well-being of teenagers based on such findings.

In 2019 California became the first state in the nation to enact a law to move back school start times. That law went into effect in 2022, and Florida passed similar legislation last year and will have later start times beginning in 2026. Currently eight state legislatures* are considering later start times as well, and Lofgren's legislation would build on that state-based effort at the federal level.

"The science is clear: when adolescents hit puberty, their biological clocks change, and they are often unable to fall asleep as early as they once could. Despite this, teenagers still need 8-10 hours of sleep per night, and early school start times often don't allow students to get the sleep they need to stay healthy and succeed academically. My family experienced this firsthand. When my daughter was in high school, she suddenly struggled to get up in the morning. It was tough, as a parent, to see this change, and it's why I first started learning about school start times," said Rep. Lofgren. "This legislation will help provide local school districts around the country with the scientific data they need to make informed decisions about school start times."

The full text of the ZZZ's to A's Act is available here.

A decade ago, the American Academy of Pediatricsfound that the average teenager s best suited to wake at 8:00am or later and, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, children and adolescents who don't get enough sleep have higher risk of obesity, diabetes, injuries, poor mental health, and issues with attention and behavior. More than 70% of high school students reportnot getting enough sleep on school nights.

* The eight states considering legislation are Connecticut (HB5522), Maine (LD257), Massachusetts (HD5140/H3980), New Jersey (A3816/S2462), New Mexico (HM56), New York (A00440/S05449), Oregon (HB2751), and Texas (HB1691/HB363).

###