DFL lawmakers propose cutting aid to MN cities that won't fly new state flag

Zumbrota City Council votes to hang old state flag

The Zumbrota City Council has voted to no longer hang the new Minnesota state flag but the old one. The state flag only flies in the City Council chambers and no where else in the city. FOX 9's Mike Manzoni has more. 

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - DFL lawmakers have proposed pulling funding for Minnesota cities that refuse to fly the new state flag.

Minnesota flag bill

What we know:

If passed, the bill directs the Minnesota Commissioner of Revenue to cut aid to any city or county that flies a flag other than the new official Minnesota state flag. Under the bill, aid would be reduced by 10%.

The cut in aid would take effect the year after the "incorrect flag" is found to be flown by the municipality. The law would take effect starting in 2027.

Changing of the flag

The backstory:

The state retired the old flag in May 2024. Since then, multiple Minnesota cities have either refused to fly the new Minnesota state flag or have voted to revert to the old Minnesota state flag. In recent months, the St. Francis, Zumbrota, and Elk River city councils have all voted to return to the old flag.

Those who support going back to the old flag have criticized the state's process in choosing a new flag, claiming the state's process of gathering public input was flawed. Others have an issue with the flag because they feel it bears too close of a resemblance to the Somali national flag, which is also a blue flag with a star.

The new Minnesota flag's designer says he didn't base his flag off Somalia's. The new flag's color represents water while the eight-point star creates the illusion of four M's if viewed from the correct angle.

Minnesota unveils new state flag

The new Minnesota state flags were raised at sunrise on Saturday. The old state flags will be preserved by the Minnesota Historical Society.

Dig deeper:

Critics called on the state to change the old flag because the seal showed a Native American being forced off Minnesota land by a white settler. Those critics pointed to a poem titled "The Seal of Minnesota" by the seal creator's wife, Mary Henderson Eastman, which makes the intent behind the artwork clear.

The poem reads in part: "The Red man's course is onward. Nor stayed his footsteps be. Till by his rugged hunting ground. Beats the relentless sea! We claim his noble heritage, and Minnesota's land. Must pass with all its untold wealth. To the white man's grasping hand."

Bill has ‘no path forward'

What's next:

The bill has been referred to the Tax committee but is unlikely to move forward in the House. In a tweet, Speaker Lisa Demuth said: "Let me be clear — this Democrat bill has NO path forward in the Minnesota House of Representatives."