Texas lawmaker proposing day after Super Bowl be a statewide holiday
HOUSTON - One Texas lawmaker is proposing a new holiday that would follow Super Bowl Sunday.
Texas House Bill 371 was drafted by State Rep. Art Fierro and would make the day after the Super Bowl a holiday statewide.
“It’s a serious issue when you talk about business owners,” said Rep. Fierro. “It’s a bill that could cost the employers nothing, yet save them billions of dollars potentially.”
Every year, it’s estimated 17 million Americans catch “Super Bowl fever” and call in-sick to work that Monday. In addition, millions of others spend Super Bowl Monday re-watching popular commercials or talking about the game.
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“For every 10 minutes that an employee spends rehashing the game or commercials, that’s costing U.S. employers almost $296 million in lost productivity,” said Fierro.
“It’s a non-issue,” said Demo Psifidis, a football fan. “I’m going to work the same whether there’s a holiday or not.”
In 2019, a New York teen started an online petition to move future Super Bowl games to Saturdays. The petition gained nearly 100,000 signatures.
“Will I get all of my time and effort that day really doing any work? Or, am I just going to be hungover and hanging out?” said Ben Deorche, a football fan. “Give them the day off, let them recuperate, and let’s get more work done the next day.”
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The bill won’t be voted on by lawmakers until at least January. There’s also a second bill that would make Election Day a state holiday in Texas.
“It’s a serious bill,” said Fierro. “I hope it brings smiles to peoples’ faces.”