Is daylight savings time costing more energy, not less?

I do enjoy the later evenings. But maybe we could just leave the clock ahead an hour permanently. That might mean more A/C in the summer (since you're home an hour earlier and it's warmer), but it also means more heat usage in the winter since we get home an hour later (and it's colder as the evening goes on). Or do we switch the time change for summer and winter - spring behind and fall ahead?

WSJ:

Their finding: Having the entire state switch to daylight-saving time each year, rather than stay on standard time, costs Indiana households an additional $8.6 million in electricity bills. They conclude that the reduced cost of lighting in afternoons during daylight-saving time is more than offset by the higher air-conditioning costs on hot afternoons and increased heating costs on cool mornings.

The energy-savings numbers often cited by lawmakers and others come from research conducted in the 1970s. Yet a key difference between now and the '70s -- or, for that matter, Ben Franklin's time -- is the prevalence of air conditioning.

There may also be social benefits to daylight-saving time that weren't covered in the research. When the extension of daylight-saving time was proposed by Mr. Markey, he cited studies that noted 'less crime, fewer traffic fatalities, more recreation time and increased economic activity' with the extra sunlight in the evening.