February 2007

Ruling issued
It's Eastern Time
for Pulaski County!

By Karen Clem Fritz

The U.S. Department of Transportation (D.O.T.) issued a final ruling Tuesday afternoon (Feb. 6) locating Pulaski County in the Eastern Time Zone.

A statement from the federal agency read, "DOT is relocating the time zone boundary in Indiana to move Pulaski County, Indiana, from the Central Time Zone to the Eastern Time Zone. The action serves the convenience of commerce, the statutory standard for a time zone change, and is taken in response to a petition filed by the Pulaski County Commissioners and County Council.

The effective date of the rule will be 2 a.m. CST, Sunday, March 11, which is the changeover date from standard time to daylight saving time.

The DOT decision was issued in a 28-page document which detailed the history of the issue, and the pertinent commerce points on which the final ruling was based. To see the the Pulaski County Time Zone docket on the US Department of Transportation docket management system website, click here. Type in 26442 for the document number and click on search. This site includes the various petitions, preliminary rulings, letters, comments and the final ruling on the Pulaski County Time Zone issue.

County commissioner Terry Young expressed his pleasure with the D.O.T.'s final ruling, and his gratitude to county citizens for their input into the petition process. He also praised the efforts of former Pulaski County Chamber of Commerce president Rene Burton and Pulaski County Community Development Commission executive director Dan Dolezal who worked together to prepare the county's final petition for Eastern Time and secure the accompanying documentation.

The action ends a yearlong effort to reverse a January 2006 ruling by the DOT which placed Pulaski County in the Central Time Zone, effectively separating it from neighboring counties it had always shared time with.

The clocktower at the Pulaski County Courthouse

While a reversal of the Central Time ruling was being sought, most county residents and businesses observed Eastern Time. Those who have been following Eastern Time will "spring forward" one hour on March 11. Those who followed the official Central Time will move their clocks ahead two hours on that date.

County officials had been expecting a final ruling since early last week. Late Wednesday (Jan. 31), Judy Kaleta of the DOT notified Indianapolis attorney Mark Shublak, who is representing Pulaski County on the time issue, that no ruling had yet been issued.

Pulaski County was notified Nov. 27 that the U.S. DOT had issued a preliminary ruling proposing to “relocate the time zone boundary in Indiana to move Pulaski County from the Central Time Zone to the Eastern Time Zone.”

Following a public comment period which ended in late December, the DOT was expected to hand down its final ruling in early February.

More than 100 letters were submitted from local individuals, organizations and businesses to the DOT during the public comment period.

Any questions on the time zone issue should be directed to Dan Dolezal at: 574-946-3869 (office); 574-946-3852 (fax); or email: ddolezal@pulaskionline.org

For a history on PulaskiCounty's Time Zone odyssey, read the following ExPRESS articles:

Preliminary ruling for Eastern Time: Time issue moves forward, but not a ‘done deal’ yet (December 2006)
Pulaski County Time? Fall Back an Hour Sunday (October 2006)
Pulaski County Time: New petition submitted (June 2006)
Most of county appears determined to observe Eastern Time (April 2006)
Pulaski County declares home rule (February 2006)
Pulaski County placed in Central Time Zone (January 2006)