POCATELLO — Nearly 20 years after it was ranked as the worst city flag in North America, the Gate City’s flag is now just outside of the top 10 in the U.S., according to a new survey from the North American Vexillological Association, or NAVA.

In 2022, NAVA, a membership organization devoted to the scientific and scholarly study of flags, included the designs of 312 known flags in their survey. The city of Pocatello flag came in 11th place with an “A” grade and a rating of 7.47.

Survey participants rated the design of each flag using a low-to-high scale of 0–10. The numerical ratings for each flag were averaged and the average rating was converted to a letter grade, with grades ranging from F to A+.

The overall average grade for the flags considered was a D+ and a rating of 3.65, according to the survey. Only 30 percent of the flags scored an A or a B, and over 60 percent got a D or an F.

NAVA is an organization with over 1,000 flag enthusiasts and scholars. For the survey, NAVA asked their members to rate the design of each flag and had the public vote as well. According to NAVA, 83 percent of the people who participated in the survey were members of the general public, with over 3,000 people participating in the 2022 NAVA American City Flags survey.

In 2004, NAVA released the findings from its The American City Flag survey, ranking Pocatello’s “Proud to Be Pocatello” flag dead last, or 150th out of 150. This flag was used in Pocatello from 2001 to 2017.

After the “Proud to Be Pocatello” flag was publicly criticized, an ad-hoc committee was formed in the spring of 2016 to develop a new city flag, according to a recent news release from the city of Pocatello.

By the fall, the committee was accepting flag submissions from the community and worldwide. Once the submission process ended, the committee found itself looking at 709 designs from 26 countries and 31 U.S. states.

The current design was rated as the highest among the public and consists of several design submissions, plus it incorporates important symbolism highlighted by the public.

On Sept. 19, 2017, Pocatello’s new flag flew over the city for the first time. Now, a little over five years later, it’s being recognized as a well-designed city flag that represents the community.

Businesses and individuals who want to utilize the flag design can find image files and color specifications at flag.pocatello.gov. The website describes the symbolism contained in the flag.

City of Pocatello flags are available for $70 at the Pocatello-Chubbuck Chamber of Commerce, 324 S. Main St.

For more information on Pocatello’s flag, visit flag.pocatello.gov.