These States Embrace Juneteenth As A Federal Holiday
This year seems to be flying by with many holidays to come. Still fairly new to some, Juneteenth will be here before you know it. It marks the day in 1865 that Union soldiers, led by General Gordon Granger, reached Galveston, Texas. They announced to the state that the Civil War was over and that all enslaved persons had been declared free. On June 19, more than 250,000 enslaved Black people in the state were free by executive decree.
Though one of the newest federal holidays to hit the scene, not every state recognizes it as one. So, which states recognize Juneteenth as a federal holiday? At the state level, governments vary considerably in whether they commemorate it as an official holiday, a day of observance, or something in between.
More on Juneteenth
According to Pew Research, in 2023, at least 28 states and the District of Columbia legally recognize Juneteenth as a public holiday. This means that state government offices were closed and state workers had a paid day off.
Juneteenth in 2023 marked the third anniversary of the federal recognition of the holiday. President Joe Biden formally recognized Juneteenth as a federal holiday, but this didn’t guarantee a day of paid time off for everyone. USA Today reported that by the time President Biden declared Juneteenth a federal holiday, almost all states had voted independently to commemorate Juneteenth as a day of observance.
As compared to public holidays, in which all state employees have the day off and banks close, days of observance like Earth Day or Flag Day are recognized but not given off.
The governors of West Virginia and Alabama have authorized Juneteenth as a state holiday through proclamation, but it will not be considered a permanent holiday unless state legislatures pass bills into law.
California allows state employees to take off on Juneteenth instead of receiving a personal holiday.
According to Pew Research, in Pennsylvania, employees under the governor’s jurisdiction can take a paid day off, and in North Carolina, employees can take a floating holiday on a day of “cultural, religious, or personal significance.”
Connecticut, Minnesota, Nevada, and Tennessee have made Juneteenth a public holiday at the state level starting last year.
Except for Texas, all states that currently recognize Juneteenth as a public holiday commemorated it as a day of observance years before it became an official state holiday. Florida, Oklahoma, and Minnesota were the first states outside Texas to commemorate Juneteenth as a day of observance in the 1990s. New Mexico has recognized Juneteenth as a state holiday since 2006, observed on the third Saturday of June. It became a paid holiday for state workers for the first time in 2022.
South Dakota, North Dakota, and Hawaii were the last states to give Juneteenth any formal recognition as an important date. The day was not observed in South Dakota until 2020 when the governor proclaimed it a state holiday.
In Hawaii and North Dakota, Juneteenth has been a day of observance since 2022 but is not considered a state holiday.
Interestingly, some companies within these states that are not government or federal jobs took the initiative to observe Juneteenth as a paid holiday.
In 2022, cities including New York, Los Angeles, and Phoenix declared the day an official paid holiday for city workers. In addition to Juneteenth, the District of Columbia celebrates Emancipation Day on April 16 in honor of the day Lincoln freed the enslaved people living in D.C., almost nine months before the Emancipation Proclamation.
