More than a dozen Woodbine residents traveled to Annapolis on Tuesday to show their support for a bill that would require the State Highway Administration to create a permit program allowing individuals and organizations to display American flags in traffic roundabouts.
The issue is a particularly touchy one in their hometown, as Del. Warren Miller — the sponsor of the bill and a Republican who represents western Howard County — noted during a hearing of the bill before the House Environmental Matters Committee.
"We've had some controversy out in Woodbine," Miller said, referring to a SHA road crew's removal of an American flag from the circle at Woodbine Road and Old Frederick Road in December, an action that sparked local protests and attracted national media attention.
It was those protests, led by the Winkler family, which had maintained the flag in the circle for three years, that led Miller and fellow west county Republican Del. Gail Bates to sponsor the bill.
Rhonda Winkler, the most vocal member of the family on the issue, was the only person other than Miller to speak publicly on the bill during the hearing. But about a dozen other residents from Woodbine, some of whom were already in Annapolis lobbying with the Howard County Farm Bureau, were at the hearing.
Winkler called the flag the "symbol of our history, of what our forefathers fought for," and told of first raising the flag in honor of her nephew, Christopher Lawson, before his deployment to Afghanistan three years ago.
The flag means a lot to veterans like Lawson, who thankfully made it home safely, Winkler said.
Miller said he has had conversations with SHA officials about allowing residents to fly flags in traffic circles, but that "there seems to be a lot of confusion within the SHA on how to allow this to happen."
He said the SHA has told him that a process exists for getting approval to fly a flag in a roundabout. But he said the process is far too complicated and burdensome for average citizens because it involves obtaining an engineer's cost estimate, a site plan, a vicinity map and various other documents.
SHA: We're working on it
In a written statement submitted to the committee for the SHA, the Maryland Department of Transportation stated it "understands the noble intentions underlying this legislation," but called the bill "redundant" and said that "existing statute allows the same result" as would be provided by the bill.
It also expressed concern that the bill is not "content neutral" — it would allow for flags to be flown but not other items — and would raise "a likely challenge under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution."
"SHA cannot permit only displays it supports," the department wrote.
It also said the SHA is developing statewide guidelines on installing fixed objects in roundabouts that will be ready in approximately six weeks.
"The statewide policy is intended to balance the request of individuals or communities to install fixed objects and landscaping against the safety concerns posed by objects within State right-of-ways," the statement said.
At the end of her statement, Winkler said she and her family will continue to fight for the right to put a flag in the Woodbine traffic circle, and hope the committee members would support the bill to help them do so.
Del. James Malone, an Arbutus Democrat whose district includes parts of Howard County and who is the vice-chairman of the committee, said committee members were committed to finding a solution.
"We've been working very hard to get this all remedied," he said.
After the hearing, Miller said Malone's comment was encouraging.
"The best part was Jimmy's closing, that we're working on it and we're going to get this resolved," Miller said.
Winkler said she was also encouraged, as did Howie Feaga, president of the Howard County Farm Bureau, who attended the hearing.
"The Farm Bureau is backing the whole idea of getting a flag," he said. "We understand it's probably all procedural, but those things need to be worked out."
Katie Loveless, who is Miss Howard County Farm Bureau and also attended the hearing, said she thinks the bill is a good idea, too.
A senior at Glenelg High School, Loveless said some people her age don't even stand up for the Pledge of Allegiance at school anymore and no longer recognize the importance of the American flag.
"So many people are forgetting what it stands for and what it means," she said.