By james art 
Olympia, Wash. – A proposal to change the state flag of Washington received a public hearing in Olympia on Tuesday afternoon. The discussion raised questions about whether the green banner with the state seal is best represents Washingtonians and whether the new flag is a priority MPs to focus on at the moment.
The House 1938 bill will set up a committee to control the design and adoption of a new flag.
The Committee, made up of legislators, artists and historians, among others, will take submission and feedback from the public throughout the redesign process.
By July 2028, they will need to unanimously accept a design and work with the legislature to create a referendum on Washingtons to vote on the new flag. Any future redress must also go through a referendum process.
According to the analysis provided by the legislative staff, the flag of Washington is the only green field and with the participation of a former president. A 2001 study by the North American Vexilology Association ranks the state flag in the lower half of all US and Canadian state and provincial flags.
Proponents of the bill said that current design was difficult to play and mixed as one of the many state flags, which is just a seal on a solid background. They claim that the flag does not really represent the state.
Bradley Lockhart, a Belingham municipal flag designer, made comparisons when the city accepted its flag in 2017. He told the House and the Tribes Committee that the initial discounts on the new symbol are later embraced by the community.
“Now this incredibly popular, ubiquitous part of the community that appears on murals and sculptures. This is on the side of our garbage trucks baked in cookies and even tattooed citizens, “said a professor at the University of Western Washington. “And this is the kind of flag that we deserve to have in Washington.”
Critics of the measure question whether a new flag should be a priority for legislators, given the shortage of the state budget and other issues. Fiscal analysis from the state estimates that efforts can cost the state over $ 2.3 million over the next four years for implementation.
Opponents also consider a potential redesign of the flag as an attack on George Washington and his meaning as a national hero.
“No other country is named president. We are also the only country that shows a person of that meaning, “Ryan Jewles testifies. “President Washington has flown power over our country for over 100 years. Let us not be the generation responsible for tearing it away from this sacred place. “
The bill will not change the state seal that contains the likeness of Washington and is located on the flag, government documents and other official places.
The bill is scheduled for voting outside the commission on Wednesday afternoon. However, the democratic guidance in the legislature said that redesigning the flag is not an urgent question.
“I think this is not the highest priority, for my cake or for me,” said house spokeswoman Lorie Jinkins. “But we will see where the commissions are moving and whether we ultimately have a discussion about him in Cook.”
The leader of the Senate majority Jamie Pedersen (D-Seattle) acknowledged the recognition of the flag of poor design, but also doubted the prospects of the bill.
“I totally agree with the house. This year is not near the first 50 priorities for the legislature. So it seems unlikely to move, “he said.
Albert James is a television reporter that covers the state government as part of the Murrow News Scholarship program – a joint effort between news publications across the country and the State University of Washington.
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