Spokane Valley considers banning pride flag in bold new ‘one flag’ policy

The City of Spokane Valley might be following in the footsteps of many other jurisdictions around the country and updating its policy on which flags can be flown on public property.

According to The Center Square, City Attorney Kelly Konkright and Senior City Deputy Attorney Tony Beattie introduced a proposal that would only allow for the American, state, and military-themed flags, such as the POW/MIA flag to be displayed on government property.

This is similar to the “One Flag Policy” executive order President Trump issued for American embassies and military installations immediately following his inauguration in January.

Konkright and Beattie believe such a policy would conform with federal and state law and could potentially save taxpayer money in legal fees down the line.

Naturally, critics of the policy have immediately pivoted their attention to the prospect of the Pride flag being banned. Though the proposal doesn’t specifically mention that flag or any other LGBTQ flags.

Councilmembers Jessica Yeager and Laura Padden believe the draft policy is too vague, even though it clearly states, “Resolution 25-016 reiterates that the City complies with state laws and national protocols for flag display and etiquette for the United States, State, City, and the national league of families’ Prisoner of War/Missing in Action (POW/MIA) flags.”

On the side of precedent

Before anyone brings up the First Amendment, Konkright and Beattie cite the 2022 Supreme Court case of Shurtleff v. City of Boston.

“This opinion clarified that cities may adopt policies which restrict the flags to be displayed on city property to those flags that reflect the views, values, and goals of the city,” says the proposal.

Furthermore, the proposal also states that Shurtleff gives cities the power to “designate city-owned flagpoles as forums only for government expression as opposed to public forums for private speech.”

Tuesday’s meeting was the first time the city council had looked at the proposal. They will review it several more times before voting on it.

Listen to The Jason Rantz Show on weekday afternoons from 3 p.m. – 7 p.m. on Seattle Red on 770 AM (HD Radio 97.3 FM HD-Channel 3). Subscribe to the podcast here. Follow Jason Rantz on X, Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook.