It was sanctioned for use by the former governing body of the provincial council for what was then known as the Province of Logroño in 1979 and it appears in the Statute of Autonomy of La Rioja of 1982, which specifies that the flag consist of four horizontal bands of equal size, with the colors of red, white, green, and yellow.

It is considered, along with the coat of arms of La Rioja and La Rioja's anthem, one of the “symbols of Riojan identity.” Once the provincial council declared its intent to take procedural steps towards regional autonomy, in June 1977 it opened a forum whereby the Riojan population could send its suggestions for the creation of a flag.

Opinions and declarations that maintained that it was too early or too inappropriate to approve a flag won out; the process was stalled in part by the president of the provincial council, Julio Luis Fernández Sevilla.

By the spring of 1977 the group of university students in Madrid known as the Colectivo Riojano had requested a flag design from the heraldic expert José María Oria de Rueda, who created various designs employing the five colors of the Riojan coat-of-arms: red, white, green, yellow, and blue.

During the Week of La Rioja in Madrid (November 1977), organized by Colectivo Riojano, a flag was created, painted with a spray can with four colors: white positioned vertically and red, green, and yellow horizontally.

Subsequently, in spring of 1978, the Colectivo Riojano also distributed some oval-shaped stickers with a four-colored design, which acquired its present form.

Pressure from the public, as well as the support given by city councils across La Rioja, led to the flag being officially approved by the Riojan government.

Article 10 states that the flag cannot be used as the principal symbol for any political party, union, business association, private entity, or person.