Utah

Utah
Country	United States
Adopted	March 9, 2024
Proportions	3:5
Country	United States
Adopted	February 16, 2011
Designed by	Sons and Daughters of Utah Pioneers
Proportions	5:8

The flag of Utah is a horizontal tricolor with irregular bands of blue, white, and red. The middle white band contains a blue hexagon outlined in gold. Within the hexagon lies a gold-colored beehive, and below it sits a five-pointed white star.

The previous flag was redesignated the "Historic Flag" and retains co-official status in the state. It continues to fly year-round at the Utah Capitol, as well as on special occasions statewide. It can be flown at any time by private citizens. The historic flag is a blue background with the state's coat of arms in the center, with the year "1896" below in white, all encircled in a golden circle.

Symbolism

At the top, a blue stripe symbolizes Utah's vast skies and lakes, as well as fundamental principles such as faith, knowledge, and freedom. The white stripe is divided into five peaks, which represent the snowy peaks of Utah's mountains, evoking peace and honoring the state's eight Tribal nations. Below, a red-rock canyon stripe signifies Southern Utah's majestic landscapes and the spirit of perseverance, nodding to the red elements on the United States flag. Outlined by a gold rim, the hexagon shape contains a beehive, symbolizing prosperity, unity, and Utah's motto 'Industry'. Below the beehive is a five-pointed star, representing hope and commemorating 1896, the year Utah attained statehood and became the 45th star on the American flag, representing the state's allegiance to the nation.

Flag colors

Color	Color Name	HEX
	Oxford Blue	#071d49
	White	#ffffff
	Dark Candy Apple Red	#aa0200
	Orange-Yellow	#ffb81d

Former flags

1896-1903

1903-1909

1909-1911

1911-1913

1913-1922

1922-2011

2011-2024

Flag redesign

In June 2021, a nine-member task force was created to design a new state flag.

On January 19, 2022, Utah Governor Spencer Cox proclaimed More Than A Flag Day, managed by the Utah Department of Cultural & Community Engagement who asked for ideas of colors and symbols or drawings of flag designs through public submissions and a survey until April 30.

The Utah State Flag Task Force later accepted design submissions from the public. 5,703 designs were submitted, 2,500 of which were submitted by students.

From June to August 2022, the Design Review Subcommittee reviewed submissions and selected 20 semi-final flag designs.

In September 2022, the semi-finalist flag designs were posted for public feedback. In the first week, more than 11,000 people responded to a survey. Public feedback on the semi-finalist flags ended on October 5.

In November 2022, the 20 semi-finalists were reduced to five finalist flag designs. On November 10, 2022, the Utah State Flag Task Force announced that they have selected a new proposed design for a Legislative vote in January 2023.

On January 18, 2023, the Utah Senate Business and Labor Committee voted 6-1 to advance the flag to the State Senate, with one senator saying he hopes the new flag design will reach the governor's desk by March 3.

On January 30, 2023, the State Senate voted 17-10 to advance the flag to the State House of Representatives to be approved. The flag proposal was also changed to replace the eight-pointed star with a five-pointed star.

On February 28, 2023, a House committee voted 7-2 to approve a slightly modified version of the flag legislation, Senate Bill 31. The modification would change the current Utah flag from a ceremonial flag to a historical one when the new flag is adopted.

On March 2, 2023, the State House of Representatives approved the bill 40-35, and the State Senate passed the concurrence vote 18-9, sending the proposed flag bill to the Governor.

The bill was signed by the Governor on March 21, 2023, along with an executive order formalizing the change. The bill and the new flag went into effect on March 9, 2024. The executive order mandates that the historic flag be flown above the State Capitol every day of the year and once the bill goes into effect, the two flags should be flown from different flagpoles on Capitol grounds. The order also petitions the Legislature to amend the bill to allow the new flag to be flown below the historic flag when they are flown together. Opponents of the new flag announced a campaign to initiate a 2023 ballot referendum on the adoption on the flag, hoping to retain the old flag, in spite of language in the bill that retains the historic flag. The signature campaign failed, ultimately receiving only 21,030 verified signatures; official verification was halted after fewer than 50,000 signatures of the 134,298 required were submitted to county clerks.

On May 17, 2023, the new flag was raised over the Utah State Capitol for the first time.

The design that was proposed to the Utah Legislature in November 2022.

The change to the flag that was proposed to the State Senate in January 2023, replacing the eight-pointed star with a five-pointed star. The flag was later adopted in March 2023, and went into effect on March 9, 2024.

Nickname

• The Beehive

Trivia

• The historic state flag of Utah was changed in 2011 to correct a design error made almost 90 years before. The mistake originated in 1922 when a flag maker misplaced the year 1847 by stitching it above the year 1896, instead of in its correct position on the shield. It is believed every flag made since 1922 used this flag as a model, and the mistake persisted for 89 years.

See also

• Utah/Commemorative Flag