STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Staten Island is one step closer to officially letting its flag fly.

Legislation the City Council passed Thursday codifying Staten Island’s flag into city law will now head to the desk of Mayor Zohran Mamdani for his signature. Councilmember Frank Morano, a Republican representing the South Shore, introduced the bill earlier this year.

“Staten Islanders have never needed a law to tell us to be proud of our borough, but it’s nice that our flag will finally have the law on its side,” Morano said. “Some people may look at this and say it’s only symbolic. I don’t see anything wrong with that. Symbols matter. Civic pride matters. This flag tells the story of our history, our identity and our place in the greatest city in the world.”

The legislation allows the flag to be flown at various civic functions, including parades and official receptions.

Mamdani’s office did not respond to a request for comment about the flag bill by the time of publication, but there isn’t a clear reason he wouldn’t sign it. Both Brooklyn and the Bronx already have their flags codified in city law. The legislation passed the Council unanimously, meaning even a mayoral veto could be overwritten.

Morano secured 28 co-sponsors for the bill from across the city and the political spectrum, including his Staten Island cohort, Councilmember Kamillah Hanks, a Democrat representing the North Shore, and Councilmember David Carr, a Republican representing the Mid-Island and a small part of South Brooklyn.

“Staten Islanders are proud of who we are, where we come from, and the borough we call home. Our flag is a reflection of that borough identity and that deserves to be officially recognized,” Hanks said. “At the heart of Staten Island is a rich mix of communities, cultures, and traditions that continue to shape our shared identity. I’m proud to stand with Council Member Frank Morano and Minority Leader Carr to make this recognition permanent and celebrate the borough we are all proud to call home.”

“After New York’s political leaders openly thwarted the will of our borough’s voters in the secession referendum of 1993, the legal establishment of our own flag is an important sign to the rest of the city and the state that Staten Island’s sense of its own self and sovereignty is as strongly felt as it was 33 years ago,” Carr, who is mounting a run for Borough President in 2029, said. “I congratulate Councilman Frank Morano on passing legislation that codifies this important part of Staten Island’s identity into law. Frank is always leading from the front of the battle lines, fighting for a better quality of life for Staten Island, and now, due to his efforts, we all have a common standard to carry together as we continue to advance our borough into a brighter tomorrow. I am proud to cosponsor this legislation alongside him.”

Morano has said he would support a secession push if Islanders voted to do so, as they did over 30 years ago, but has framed the flag bill as a way to encourage civic pride across the borough.

The law would officially recognize the flag designed by Borough Hall graphic designer Emil Micha about a decade ago under former Borough President James Oddo.

“For Staten Island, to be proud of a flag that represents us, I think has value,” Micha said at a June Council hearing on the flag. “Somebody can look at it and say ‘yea, I feel good about that,’ then I think that was the purpose.”

The flag incorporates Staten Island’s seal, which features a female figure standing on the borough holding a sword and shield. She is seen looking out onto the Narrows, where Henry Hudson’s ship “The Half Moon” and a smaller boat sail.

The armed female figure in the seal is meant to represent the city of New York.

In 1609, Hudson named the borough “Statten Eylandt,” Dutch for “States Island,” and the borough became part of the city in 1898 after the five boroughs’ consolidation. Both years are represented on the seal.

Oddo unveiled the new design in 2016 because the previous version reminded him of the Fresh Kills Landfill, with a large mound in the background and seagulls flying over it.