Flying above the Capitol building in Salt Lake City, Utah, or hanging over the commons of Ridgeline High School, the solid blue base emblazoned with Utah’s seal has represented the state with only minor changes since the first flag was created in 1903, almost a hundred and twenty years ago. This long lasting legacy may be coming to an end though, with the new “More than a flag” initiative started by Utah Governor Spencer J. Cox on January 19th.

In an effort to increase unity with Utahns, it has been proposed that a new flag be created, one that better represents Utah and its residents today. On flag.utah.gov, a section of the utah.gov website specifically for the “More than a flag initiative”, it says that, “A new flag offers a chance for Utahns to have a conversation about what’s distinctive about this place… A new flag can draw upon our history and be a symbol in a bigger initiative to think about what unites us. A new flag could be one step in helping all of us, together, face our pressing issues”.

To encourage resident’s involvement, it was left up to Utah residents to submit their ideas for the flag colors, themes, symbols, and even the flag designs themselves, of which over 5,000 were submitted. After establishing the desired common themes and designs in the submissions, featuring things like mountains, red rock formations like Delicate Arch, and beehives; twenty Semi-Finalist flags were created.

The “More than a Flag” page has a survey to collect resident feedback on which flags they like best and why they think it represents Utah and its residents best. The twenty Semi-finalist flags have been made and are being displayed in front of the Historic Cache County Courthouse in Logan, Cedar City, and the Utah Capitol in Salt Lake City from this time of writing until October 5th 2022.

The state will be collecting the feedback on the twenty Semi-Finalist flags until October 5th as well. Later this fall the Design Review Subcommittee will review the feedback from Utah Residents and pick three to five finalist designs.

An article regarding the state flag change by Carter Williams on KSL news says that Gov. Spencer Cox and Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson, the leaders of the Utah State Flag Task Force and other members of the task force, “will then pick one or two final designs to present to the Utah Legislature for a final vote during a special session that is expected by the end the of the year.”

Lt. Gov. Henderson said that “A new state flag is meant to contribute to our common identity as a state, it’s not meant to cancel anything in the past. It’s not going to cancel our old flag”.

Additionally, if a new flag is adopted, the current flag will be named the Governor’s Flag and will continue to fly over the Governor’s office at the capitol rather than be totally retired.