Patriot Day - September 11, the US observance remembering 9/11
Patriot Day on September 11 is the United States federal observance remembering the 2,977 victims of the 2001 terrorist attacks. Established by Congress in 2001, observed with a moment of silence at 8:46 AM ET, flag-half-staff, and remembrance ceremonies. Not a federal holiday.
Civic memorialPublished October 14, 2026
- Observed in
- Where observed
- When
- September
- Frequency
- Same date every year
- Days off
- 1 day - some jurisdictions give time off
- Public status
- Memorial / civic observance - half-mast on government flags
Patriot Day on September 11 is the United States federal observance remembering the 2,977 victims of the 2001 terrorist attacks. Established by Congress on December 18, 2001, just 99 days after the attacks, it is observed with a moment of silence at 8:46 AM Eastern Time, half-staff flag display, and remembrance ceremonies at firehouses, police precincts, and the 9/11 Memorial sites.
The one-line summary
US federal observance every September 11 remembering the 2001 terrorist attacks. Established December 18, 2001. Not a federal holiday (banks, USPS, and stock markets remain open). Observed with a moment of silence at 8:46 AM ET.
Origin and history
Patriot Day was established by Public Law 107-89 on December 18, 2001, signed by President George W. Bush just three months after the attacks. The law, often referred to as the USA PATRIOT Act companion measure on the 9/11 commission recommendation list, designated September 11 of each year as Patriot Day. The original bill was drafted in October 2001 by Representative Vito Fossella of Staten Island, whose district included Ground Zero and where many first responders had died.
The first observance was on September 11, 2002, the first anniversary. From 2002 through 2008 the day was called Patriot Day; from 2009 through 2018 it was renamed (and re-renamed) by presidential proclamation - most controversially to "National Day of Service and Remembrance" by President Barack Obama in 2009, a designation that remained optional and was never fully adopted in the popular nomenclature. By 2019 the name Patriot Day had been formally restored under presidential proclamation by Donald Trump and has remained the de facto title since.
How it is observed
The official federal observance begins at 8:46 AM Eastern Time, the moment American Airlines Flight 11 struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center. Americans are asked to observe a moment of silence - now expanded to include moments at 9:03 AM (South Tower strike), 9:37 AM (Pentagon strike), 9:59 AM (South Tower collapse), 10:03 AM (Flight 93 crash), and 10:28 AM (North Tower collapse). The US flag is flown at half-staff for the entire day.
The largest public commemoration is held at the National September 11 Memorial and Museum in Lower Manhattan, where the names of the victims are read aloud in a tradition that began with the 10th anniversary in 2011. The reading takes roughly three hours and is often attended by families of the victims, the President of the United States, and dignitaries. Smaller ceremonies take place at firehouses and police precincts across the country, in Shanksville, Pennsylvania (the Flight 93 National Memorial), and at the Pentagon Memorial in Arlington, Virginia.
Legal status
Patriot Day is a federal observance under 36 U.S.C. section 144, not a federal holiday under 5 U.S.C. section 6103. Government offices, banks, the US Postal Service, and the bond markets remain open. The NYSE and NASDAQ are open. Most private employers operate normally. Some schools and municipalities choose to close or hold special programming. Federal employees do not get a paid day off, though many workplaces allow informal observance.
The half-staff flag order applies for the entire day from sunrise to sunset, signed annually by the President as a proclamation under 36 U.S.C. section 175. The American Legion, the 9/11 Commission, and the Families of September 11 advocacy group have repeatedly asked Congress to elevate it to a full federal holiday, but these proposals have not been enacted as of 2026.
9/11-related illnesses
The death toll from 9/11 has continued to grow beyond the initial 2,973 victims who died in the immediate attacks. The World Trade Center Health Program and the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund track responders and survivors who have developed 9/11-related cancers, respiratory illnesses, and PTSD. As of 2025 the cumulative death toll, counting those who have died from 9/11-related illnesses in the 24 years since, exceeds 4,000.
The 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund, reauthorized in 2019 with a 10-year window, has paid over $10 billion to claimants including first responders, downtown Manhattan residents and workers, and family members of victims. The fund's award amounts vary by economic loss and the type of harm, with the highest awards for those with permanent total disability.
The memorial sites
Three principal 9/11 memorials span the attack sites. The National September 11 Memorial and Museum in Lower Manhattan occupies the footprints of the Twin Towers with twin reflecting pools and bronze parapets inscribed with the victims' names. The Pentagon Memorial in Arlington, Virginia, consists of 184 cantilevered benches arranged in a field, one for each victim at the Pentagon. The Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, marks the field where United Flight 93 crashed and includes a 93-foot Tower of Voices.
Patriot Day by the numbers
Sources
- 36 U.S.C. section 144 (Patriot Day): law.cornell.edu
- Public Law 107-89 (December 18, 2001).
- National September 11 Memorial and Museum: 911memorial.org
- Flight 93 National Memorial, National Park Service.
- 9/11 Commission Report (2004): govinfo.library.unt.edu
- World Trade Center Health Program and Victim Compensation Fund annual reports.