House Bill NO. 524

By Senator(s) Walls

SECTION 1. The following provision shall be codified as Section 3-3-16, Mississippi Code of 1972:

3-3-16. (1) The official flag of the State of Mississippi shall have the following design: with width two-thirds (2/3) of its length; the union (canton) to be square, bordered with white on the fly side and the bottom side, in width two-thirds (2/3) the width of the flag, the ground of the union to be old glory blue, and emblazoned with an outer circle of thirteen (13) five-pointed stars, an inner circle of six (6) five-pointed stars and a single large five-pointed star in the center; the stars in the inner and outer circle to be one-twelfth (1/12) the width of the flag, and the center star to be one-eighth (1/8) the width of the flag, with all stars to be pointed upward; the field to be divided into three (3) bars of equal width, the upper one old glory blue, the center one white and the lower one old glory red. The nineteen (19) stars surrounding the center star represent the first nineteen (19) states admitted to the United States. The center star represents the State of Mississippi and symbolizes that Mississippi was the twentieth state admitted to the United

States.

(2) The flag adopted by the Mississippi Legislature in the 1894 Special Session shall be an official historical flag of the State of Mississippi and shall be honored, protected and flown wherever historical flags are flown.

(3) None of the following items, structures or areas may be relocated, removed, disturbed, altered, renamed or rededicated: any Revolutionary War, War of 1812, Mexican War, War Between the States, Spanish-American War, World War I, World War II, Korean War, Vietnam War, Persian Gulf War, Native-American or African-American historical statue, monument, memorial or nameplate, which has been erected on public property of the state or any of its political subdivisions; and any statue, monument, memorial, nameplate, street, bridge, building, park, preserve, reserve or other public item, structure or area of the state or any of its political subdivisions, which has been dedicated in memory of or named for any historical figure or historical event.

No person may prevent the public body responsible for maintaining any of the items, structures or areas described above from taking proper measures and exercising proper means for the protection, preservation and care of those items, structures or areas.

The provisions of this subsection (3) may be amended or repealed only upon passage of an act that has received a two-thirds (2/3) vote on final passage in each house of the Legislature.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.

AN ACT TO ADOPT THE MISSISSIPPI STATE FLAG; TO PROVIDE THAT THE 1894 FLAG DESIGN SHALL BE AN OFFICIAL HISTORIC FLAG; TO PROHIBIT THE ALTERATION OF CERTAIN HISTORICAL MONUMENTS AND MEMORIALS; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.