EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MAT TER ADDED TO EXISTIN G LAW.
[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
*hb1472*
HOUSE BILL 1472
P1 5lr2336
By: Delegates Metzgar and McComas
Introduced and read first time: February 7, 2025
Assigned to: Health and Government Operations
A BILL ENTITLED
AN ACT concerning 1
State Government – State House Trust – Ten Commandments Monument 2
Display Act 3
FOR the purpose of requiring a certain Ten Commandments Monument to be placed on the 4
grounds of the Maryland State House; requiring the Commission on Artistic Property 5
to oversee the care and maintenance of the monument; establishing the Commission 6
on the Ten Commandments Monument; and generally relating to a Ten 7
Commandments Monument. 8
BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 9
Article – State Government 10
Section 9–1016 and 9–1021 11
Annotated Code of Maryland 12
(2021 Replacement Volume and 2024 Supplement) 13
Preamble 14
WHEREAS, The Ten Commandments, found in the Bible at Exodus 20:1 –17 and 15
Deuteronomy 5:6–21, are an important component of the moral foundation of the laws and 16
legal system of the United States of America and of the State of Maryland; and 17
WHEREAS, The courts of the United States and various states frequently cite the 18
Ten Commandments in published decisions; and 19
WHEREAS, In 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court recognized that it is permissible to 20
display the Ten Commandments on government property in Van Orden v. Perry; and 21
WHEREAS, In 2019, the U.S. Supreme Court further recognized that the Ten 22
Commandments “have historical significance as one of the foundations of our legal system”, 23
in American Legion v. American Humanists Association, and the court also ruled that the 24 2 HOUSE BILL 1472
displaying of the Ten Commandments on public property may have “multiple purposes” 1
such as “historical significance” and represents a “common cultural heritage”; and 2
WHEREAS, Recognizing the historical role of the Ten Commandments accords with 3
our nation’s history and faithfully reflects the understanding of the founders of our nation 4
with respect to the necessity of civic morality to a functional self–government; history 5
records that James Madison, the fourth President of the United States, stated that “[w]e 6
have staked the whole future of our new nation…upon the capacity of each of ourselves to 7
govern ourselves according to the moral principles of the Ten Commandments”; and 8
WHEREAS, In order that they may understand and appreciate the basic principles 9
of the American system of government, the people of the United States and the State of 10
Maryland need to identify the Ten Commandments, one of many sources, as influencing 11
the development of what has become modern law; and 12
WHEREAS, The placing of a monument to the Ten Commandments on the grounds 13
of the Maryland State House would help the people of the United States and the State of 14
Maryland to know the Ten Commandments as the moral foundation of the law; and 15
WHEREAS, It is the Legislature’s intent to apply the decision set forth by the U.S. 16
Supreme Court in Van Orden v. Perry, to continue the rich tradition and ensure that the 17
citizens of our State may understand and appreciate the foundational documents of our 18
State and national government, and that in the placing of a monument to the Ten 19
Commandments on the grounds of the Maryland State House would help the people of the 20
United States and the State of Maryland to recognize the Ten Commandments as the moral 21
foundation of the law; now, therefore, 22
SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 23
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 24
Article – State Government 25
9–1016. 26
In this Part II of this subtitle, “Commission” means the Commission on Artistic 27
Property. 28
9–1021. 29
(a) (1) The Commission is the official custodian of all valuable paintings and 30
other objects of decorative art owned by or loaned to the State, except those located in a 31
State room of the Government House. With respect to the objects subject to its official 32
custody, the Commission shall: 33
(i) keep a continuing inventory of the objects; and 34
HOUSE BILL 1472 3
(ii) be responsible for and supervise the acquisition, custody, display, 1
location, preservation, proper care, security, and restoration of the objects. 2
(2) At such time as the State acquires the Peabody Art Collection from the 3
Peabody Institute, the Commission shall become the official custodian of the Collection. 4
(3) In exercising its custodial responsibilities, the Commission may loan 5
objects owned by the State to qualified institutions and may contract with such institutions 6
for the performance of curatorial services. 7
(b) (1) Each person or agency that desires to acquire a painting or object of 8
decorative art for display in or on the premises of any State building, except in a room of 9
the Government House, must receive both prior approval and final acceptance from the 10
Commission. 11
(2) Before giving prior approval or final acceptance in accordance with this 12
subsection, the Commission shall consider: 13
(i) the competence of the artist; 14
(ii) the proposed location of the object; and 15
(iii) the quality, historical significance, and appropriateness of the 16
work. 17
(c) This subtitle does not apply to artwork acquired through the Maryland Public 18
Art Initiative Program established under Title 4, Subtitle 6 of the Economic Development 19
Article. 20
SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That: 21
(a) (1) A suitable monument of the Ten Commandments shall be placed on the 22
grounds of the Maryland State House. 23
(2) The monument shall contain the following text: 24
“The Ten Commandments 25
I AM the LORD thy God. 26
Thou shalt have no other gods before me. 27
Thou shalt not make to thyself any graven images. 28
Thou shalt not take the Name of the Lord thy God in vain. 29
Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 30
Honor thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long upon the land which the 31
Lord thy God giveth thee. 32
Thou shalt not kill. 33
Thou shalt not commit adultery. 34
Thou shalt not steal. 35 4 HOUSE BILL 1472
Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor. 1
Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s house. 2
Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife, nor anything that is thy neighbor’s.”. 3
(b) The Commission on Artistic Property shall oversee the care and maintenance 4
of the monument of the Ten Commandments after the monument is placed on the grounds 5
of the Maryland State House. 6
(c) This section may be cited as the Ten Commandments Monument Display Act. 7
SECTION 3. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That: 8
(a) There is a Commission on the Ten Commandments Monument. 9
(b) (1) The Commission consists of the following members: 10
(i) two members appointed by the President of the Senate; 11
(ii) two members appointed by the Speaker of the House; and 12
(iii) three members appointed by the Governor. 13
(2) Individuals appointed to the Commission under paragraph (1) of this 14
subsection must have training, expertise, or special interests that will benefit the purposes 15
of the Commission. 16
(c) The Governor shall designate the chair of the Commission. 17
(d) The Division of Historical and Cultural Programs in the Department of 18
Planning shall provide staff for the Commission in consultation with other appropriate 19
agencies, including the State House Trust, the Maryland State Arts Council, and the 20
Department of General Services. 21
(e) A member of the Commission: 22
(1) may not receive compensation as a member of the Commission; but 23
(2) is entitled to reimbursement for expenses under the Standard State 24
Travel Regulations, as provided in the State budget. 25
(f) The Commission shall: 26
(1) as soon as practicable, but not later than December 31, 2025, develop 27
and implement a process for the design, construction, and placement of a monument of the 28
Ten Commandments on the grounds of the Maryland State House by a private entity at no 29
cost to the State; 30
HOUSE BILL 1472 5
(2) advise the Governor, the General Assembly, and State agencies on 1
matters relating to the monument; 2
(3) perform other duties necessary to approve the design and site selection 3
for the monument, including arranging for placement of the monument in a location where 4
there are no other monuments; and 5
(4) complete all of its duties by June 30, 2027. 6
(g) In the event that the legality or constitutionality of the monument under this 7
section is challenged in a court of law, the Attorney General may: 8
(1) prepare and present a legal defense of the monument; or 9
(2) request the assistance of a nonprofit legal organization that specializes 10
in First Amendment cases to prepare and present a legal defense of the monument. 11
(h) The placement of the monument may not be construed to mean that the State 12
favors any particular religion or denomination over others. 13
SECTION 4. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect July 14
1, 2025. Section 3 of this Act shall remain effective for a period of 3 years and, at the end of 15
June 30, 2028, Section 3 of this Act, with no further action required by the General 16
Assembly, shall be abrogated and of no further force and effect. 17