H5709

	2013 -- H 5709
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	LC01344
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	STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

	IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

	JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2013

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	A N A C T
	RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT - HONOR AND REMEMBRANCE
	FLAG


	Introduced By: Representatives MacBeth, Gallison, Slater, and Almeida

	Date Introduced: February 27, 2013

	Referred To: House Veterans` Affairs




	It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

1-1	SECTION 1. Chapter 42-4 of the General Laws entitled "State Emblems" is hereby
1-2	amended by adding thereto the following section:
1-3	42-4-19. Honor and remembrance flag. – (a) The honor and remembrance flag created
1-4	by Honor and Remember, Inc., is hereby designated as the state's official emblem of service and
1-5	sacrifice by the brave men and women of the United States armed forces who have given their
1-6	lives in the line of duty and any police personnel, fire personnel, EMT's, rescue personnel, or any
1-7	branch of law enforcement who have lost their lives in the line of duty in response to a terrorist
1-8	activity.
1-9	(b) Findings. (1) Since the Revolutionary War, more than one million members of the
1-10	United States armed forces have paid the ultimate price by sacrificing their lives in the line of
1-11	duty.
1-12	(2) The contribution of those fallen members of the armed forces are deserving of
1-13	national recognition.
1-14	(3) Currently, there is no officially recognized symbol that specifically acknowledges
1-15	members of the armed forces who have died in the line of duty.
1-16	(c) Required display. The honor and remember flag shall be displayed at the locations
1-17	specified in subsection (c) on the days specified. The required honor and remember flag display
1-18	days are the following:
2-19	(1) Armed Forces Day, the third Saturday in May;
2-20	(2) Memorial Day, the last Monday in May;
2-21	(3) Flag Day, June 14;
2-22	(4) Fourth of July;
2-23	(5) National POW/MIA Recognition Day;
2-24	(6) Veterans' Day, November 11;
2-25	(7) Gold Star Mother's Day, the last Sunday of September; and
2-26	(8) Whenever there is a state military casualty.
2-27	In addition to the days specified in subdivision (2), the honor and remember flag should
2-28	display at all state military memorials and state veteran cemeteries any day on which the flag of
2-29	the United States is displayed.
2-30	(d) Locations for flag display. The locations for the display of the honor and remember
2-31	flag under subsection (b) are the following:
2-32	(1) The state capitol building;
2-33	(2) The building that serves as the location of the superior court in a county;
2-34	(3) The building that serves as the city or town hall of each incorporated city or town; and
2-35	(4) Any other state locations that are deemed appropriate for that state.
2-36	(e) Display to be in a manner visible to the public. Display of the honor and remember
2-37	flag pursuant to this section shall be in a manner designed to ensure visibility to the public.
2-38	(f) Limitation. This section may not be construed or applied so as to require any
2-39	employee to report to work solely for the purpose of providing for the display of the honor and
2-40	remember flag or any other flag.
2-41	(g) The honor and remember flag created by Honor and Remember, Inc. is designated as
2-42	the symbol of our state's concern and commitment to honoring and remembering the lives of all
2-43	members of the United States armed forces who have lost their lives while serving, or as a result
2-44	of service and their families.
2-45	The honor and remember flag's red field represents the blood shed by brave men and
2-46	women who sacrificed their lives for freedom and the flag's white field and border recognizes the
2-47	purity of that sacrifice. The flag's blue star is a symbol of active service in military conflict that
2-48	dates back to World War I. The flag's gold star signifies the ultimate sacrifice of a warrior in
2-49	active service who is not returning home and reflects the value of the life given. The folded flag
2-50	element highlights this nation's final tribute to a fallen service member and a family's sacrifice.
2-51	The flag's flame symbolizes the eternal spirit of the departed.
2-52	The honor and remember flag is a unifying symbol recognizing this nation's solemn debt
2-53	to the estimated one million six hundred thousand (1,600,000) fallen service members throughout
3-1	history and the families and communities who mourn their loss.
3-2	(h) Time of display. The flag shall be displayed in a manner visible to the pubic. Display
3-3	of the honor and remembrance flag pursuant to this section shall be in a manner designed to
3-4	ensure visibility to the public.
3-5	It should be displayed only from sunrise to sunset on buildings and on stationary
3-6	flagstaffs in the open. The flag may be displayed twenty-four (24) hours a day if properly
3-7	illuminated during the hours of darkness. It should be joisted briskly and lowered ceremoniously.
3-8	It should not be displayed on days when the weather is inclement, except when an all-weather
3-9	flag is displayed.
3-10	(i) Presentation. The flag shall be presented to the family at the funeral for an active
3-11	serviceman, servicewoman, or any of the personnel referred to in subsection (a). The state of
3-12	Rhode Island shall assume the cost for these flags.
3-13	SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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	LC01344
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	EXPLANATION
	BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
	OF
	A N A C T
	RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT - HONOR AND REMEMBRANCE
	FLAG
	***

4-1	This act would designate the honor and remembrance flag created by Honor and
4-2	Remember, Inc. as the state's official emblem for United States military service members and any
4-3	rescue personnel involved in a terrorist-related response who have died in the line of duty that
4-4	also designates the dates and places of the flag's display.
4-5	This act would take effect upon passage.

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	LC01344
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H5709