Texas customers ask us a short question: how do I fly the Lone Star next to the Stars and Stripes without getting the order wrong? We make and sell Made in USA flags, including a Texas state flag, and we answer from the statute text. Texas flag etiquette for a house is written into Chapter 3100 of the Texas Government Code, and it sits beside the U.S. Flag Code at 4 U.S.C. § 7.

TL;DR: On two separate poles at the same spot, use poles of the same height and flags of about the same size. Put the U.S. flag to the observer's left of the Texas flag. Raise the U.S. flag first and lower the Texas flag first (Tex. Gov't Code § 3100.055; 4 U.S.C. § 7(f)). On one shared pole, the U.S. flag goes above Texas. Half-staff means peak for an instant, then half, then peak again before you take it down (§ 3100.065). The Flag Code reserves nothing for Texas here. It bars a state flag from flying above the U.S. flag or to its right.

Texas Flag Etiquette and the Same-Height Myth

We still hear that Texas is the only state allowed to fly its flag at the same height as the U.S. flag because it was once a republic. It is a good story. It is not the law.

We read § 3100.055 the same way every time: same-height poles, about equal sizes, U.S. flag on the observer's left, U.S. up first, Texas down first. The Flag Code covers the order for every state flag on adjacent staffs: hoist the U.S. flag first and lower it last. No other flag, Texas included, goes above it or to its right (4 U.S.C. § 7(c), (f)).

So texas flag etiquette follows the Flag Code's order of honor, and state law spells out the homeowner steps.

Flying the Texas Flag with the U.S. Flag: Two Poles vs One

Two staffs is the clean setup. One pole with both flags on the same rope works too, as long as the U.S. flag stays on top.

We keep the homeowner rules in one table:

Setup What the law says Cite Common mistake
Two poles at one location Same height poles; flags about equal size; U.S. flag to observer's left; hoist U.S. first; lower Texas first Tex. Gov't Code §3100.055(b); 4 USC 7(f) Texas on the left or on a taller pole
One shared pole or halyard U.S. flag above the Texas flag at the peak §3100.055(a); 4 USC 7(f) Texas above or level with the U.S. flag on the same rope
Raise and lower order U.S. up first; Texas down first; U.S. down last §3100.055(b)(4)-(5); 4 USC 7(f) Both raised together or Texas left up alone
Half-staff (halyard pole) Peak for an instant; lower to half-staff; raise to peak again before taking down §3100.065(a)-(b); 4 USC 7(m) Dropping straight to half without the peak salute
Memorial Day Half-staff until noon then raise to the peak §3100.065(c); 4 USC 7(m) Leaving it at half all day
Fixed house bracket Top of the flag at the peak unless at half-staff; no method given for a staff without a halyard §3100.060(a); §3100.065 Inventing a lower notch as half-staff for Texas

We tell people to stand where a neighbor would stand on the sidewalk. "Observer's left" is that person's left. The Flag Code's "no flag to the U.S. flag's right" is the same idea from the flag's point of view.

We match the flags by size so one does not swallow the other. We pair a 3x5 with a 3x5.

Outdoor and House Display Rules

Chapter 3100 also covers the Lone Star on its own.

Outdoors, we follow sunrise to sunset. For patriotic effect the flag may stay up 24 hours if properly lit, or in the same circumstances as the U.S. flag (§ 3100.052). Keep it in during bad weather unless it is weatherproof. On a pole, the white stripe stays uppermost, except as a signal of dire distress (§ 3100.053).

We hang it flat on a wall the same way the statute reads. Horizontal: white above red, and from the observer to the right of the blue (§ 3100.059(a)). Vertical: blue on top, white to the observer's left of the red (§ 3100.059(b)). In a window, use that horizontal rule as seen from outside (§ 3100.060(d)).

On a staff that sticks out from the house, the top of the Texas flag goes at the peak of the staff unless the flag is at half-staff (§ 3100.060(a)). That matches the U.S. projecting-staff rule in 4 U.S.C. § 7(h). Our how to display the American flag on a house guide walks through the U.S. union rules for a bracket or a wall.

Texas Flag Half-Staff Rules

When the Texas flag goes to half-staff, state law mirrors the Flag Code motion (§ 3100.065; 4 U.S.C. § 7(m)):

  1. Hoist it to the peak for an instant.
  2. Lower it to half-staff.
  3. Before you take it down for the day, raise it to the peak again.
  4. Then lower it the rest of the way.

On Memorial Day the flag stays at half-staff until noon, then goes back to the peak (§ 3100.065(c)). Peace Officers Memorial Day (May 15) is half-staff unless it is also Armed Forces Day (§ 3100.065(d)). The governor may order half-staff on a person's death (§ 3100.065(e)). We check the Texas governor's flag-status page when a statewide call is in the news. A fixed porch bracket is the hard case. Half-staff assumes a pole you can hoist and lower. An angled house bracket with a sleeved flag has no halyard and nowhere to stop halfway. Section 3100.060(a) puts the top of the flag at the peak of a projecting staff unless it is at half-staff, but Chapter 3100 never says how to half-staff a staff with no halyard. On our sleeved bracket we keep the Texas flag at the peak; the statute is silent there. For a U.S. flag on the same kind of bracket, our Pearl Harbor Day half-staff guide covers the black mourning ribbon, which is common practice and not Texas law.

Pairing a Texas Flag with a U.S. Flag

Our Texas flag with an appliqued star and sewn stripes is nylon with a reinforced header and brass grommets (3x5 to 5x8) in our Texas flags collection. Beside it we fly a same-size Durable Patriot, embroidered nylon with sewn stripes, so both take the wind the same way.

The whole thing fits on an index card. Same height. U.S. on the observer's left, up first, down last. White stripe on top. Peak before and after half-staff, if the pole can do it.

Related from our blog: How to display the American flag on a house · Pearl Harbor Day flag half staff · Veterans Day flag etiquette

Questions About Texas Flag Etiquette

Can the Texas flag fly at the same height as the U.S. flag?
Yes, on separate poles of the same height, with flags of about the same size and the U.S. flag to the observer's left, under Tex. Gov't Code § 3100.055. The U.S. Flag Code does not reserve that for Texas; 4 U.S.C. § 7(f) bars a state flag above the U.S. flag or to its right.

Which side does the Texas flag go on?
From the person looking at the display, the U.S. flag goes on the left and the Texas flag on the right (§ 3100.055(b)(3); 4 U.S.C. § 7(f)). That keeps the Texas flag from sitting to the U.S. flag's own right. We check it from the sidewalk.

Two poles or one: what order and position?
On one shared halyard, the U.S. flag goes at the peak above the Texas flag (§ 3100.055(a); 4 U.S.C. § 7(f)). On two poles, raise the U.S. flag first, then the Texas flag. At the end of the day, lower the Texas flag first, then the U.S. flag (§ 3100.055(b)(4)-(5)).

When is the Texas flag at half-staff?
Follow § 3100.065: peak for an instant, then half-staff, then peak again before lowering. Memorial Day is half-staff until noon. Peace Officers Memorial Day (May 15) is half-staff unless it is also Armed Forces Day. The governor may order half-staff after a death. Check the Texas governor's flag-status page for a current call.

What if my house bracket cannot half-staff the Texas flag?
Chapter 3100 describes a hoist-and-lower motion. A fixed angled bracket cannot do that, and the statute does not prescribe a mourning streamer for Texas or a method for a staff with no halyard. We keep a sleeved Texas flag at the peak as our own practice. For a U.S. flag on a bracket, see our Pearl Harbor Day guide for the black-ribbon practice used elsewhere; that practice is not Texas law.

How should the Texas flag hang on a wall or in a window?
Horizontal or in a window (read from outside): white stripe above red, and white to the observer's right of the blue stripe (§§ 3100.059(a), 3100.060(d)). Vertical: blue stripe on top, white to the observer's left of red (§ 3100.059(b)). On a flying staff, white stripe uppermost except as a distress signal (§ 3100.053).

Sources

0 commentson Texas Flag Etiquette: How to Fly the Texas Flag with the U.S. Flag (Order, Height, Half-Staff)

Latest Stories

This section doesn’t currently include any content. Add content to this section using the sidebar.