According to John Wallace, the Press Secretary for the Florida Senate Majority Office, an amendment to a bill that was intended to allow certain flags to be flown on government property was withdrawn on Tuesday after it had been filed in error.
The goal of the bill was to allow certain flags to be flown on government property.
Tuesday was the day when the bill was presented to the committee that oversees the government’s accountability in the Florida Senate.
Throughout the course of the debate, some language was added to the law that would make it possible to fly the Confederate flag, while at the same time making it illegal to fly the Pride flag in front of or inside of government facilities.
The bill, which was submitted on February 9 and has the internal designations SB 668 and HB 1011, was introduced in Tallahassee before the start of the current legislative session. The plan called for an end to the inappropriate flying of flags in public places.
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Florida Aims to Ban Pride Flag
If Governor Ron DeSantis approves and signs the modification that was proposed in the committee, the measure will be amended to restrict the kind of flags that can be flown to those that are mentioned.
The inclusion of the flag of the Confederate States of America on the list of flags, which can be found between the flags of Florida’s universities and colleges and the flags that indicate beach warnings, is perhaps the most notable thing about the list. After discovering that it had been submitted incorrectly, the amendment was eventually retracted.
It is also noteworthy that another flag, known as the Pride flag, which has flown in or near government buildings in the past was not allowed to fly there.
The city administration of St. Petersburg flies the Pride flag in front of City Hall, which is a practice that would be prohibited if the law were to pass in its current iteration.
Other flags specifically permitted by the bill include flags that are already permitted by state law, such as the flag of the United States of America, the flag of the United Nations, and the flag of the state.
According to an analysis of the law that was produced and submitted by the “Professional Staff of the Committee on Governmental Oversight and Accountability,” there may be a constitutional question regarding the prohibition that the measure imposes on other flags. This claim is made in the analysis.
The research found that the bill, in its current form, does not actually define what a flag is. This was another finding of the investigation. As of the 14th of March, there has been no votes taken on the bill, since the committee is still debating the idea.
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