Iowa’s public buildings must obey gubernatorial proclamations ordering them to lower their flags to half-staff, under a law Gov. Kim Reynolds has signed.
“In the aftermath of a tragedy, lowering flags allows communities to come together in mourning and to honor those who have made a great impact on our state or nation,” Reynolds said in a statement. “The changes this legislation makes will ensure flags across Iowa fly at half-staff when officially ordered, acting as a symbol of respect for those whose lives and service deserve such recognition.”
The law applies to public buildings, including properties controlled by the state, cities, counties and school districts.
Reynolds proposed the law earlier this year after Johnson County Board of Supervisors Chair Jon Green last fall declined to lower the county’s flags to half-staff when Reynolds issued a proclamation after the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
After the bill passed the House in April, Green dismissed the legislation as a “silly messaging bill” and said lawmakers should spend their time on more important issues.
“I just don’t think that it’s something that needs to be raised to the level of attention that the Legislature has to debate a bill about this and insert themselves into county business,” he said. “I’d rather work in partnership with the Legislature, but these folks, they don’t seem to have any desire to work in partnership. They just want to dictate terms to us.”
The law says, “the custodian and the board of public officers of a public building in the state shall have the flags of the United States of America and the state of Iowa flown at half-staff when so directed by a proclamation issued by the governor.”
The measure received broad bipartisan support in the Iowa Legislature, passing the House 82-5 and passing the Senate 38-9.
Iowa’s flags are at half-staff on Friday, May 15, in commemoration of Peace Officers Memorial Day.
Stephen Gruber-Miller is the Capitol bureau chief for the Des Moines Register. He can be reached by email at sgrubermil@registermedia.com, by phone at 515-284-8169 or on X at @sgrubermiller.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Reynolds signs law making public buildings follow flag-lowering orders
Reporting by Stephen Gruber-Miller, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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