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| 2 | 2 | | FIRST REGULAR SESSION |
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| 3 | 3 | | SENATE BILL NO. 643 |
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| 4 | 4 | | 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 5 | 5 | | INTRODUCED BY SENATOR HUDSON. |
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| 6 | 6 | | 2562S.01I KRISTINA MARTIN, Secretary |
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| 7 | 7 | | AN ACT |
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| 8 | 8 | | To amend chapter 171, RSMo, by adding thereto one new section relating to the Ten |
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| 9 | 9 | | Commandments in schools. |
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| 10 | 10 | | |
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| 11 | 11 | | Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Missouri, as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | Section A. Chapter 171, RSMo, is amended by adding thereto 1 |
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| 13 | 13 | | one new section, to be known as section 171.022, to read as 2 |
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| 14 | 14 | | follows:3 |
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| 15 | 15 | | 171.022. 1. As used in this section, "Ten 1 |
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| 16 | 16 | | Commandments" means the following text: 2 |
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| 17 | 17 | | "The Ten Commandments 3 |
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| 18 | 18 | | I AM the LORD thy God. 4 |
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| 19 | 19 | | Thou shalt have no other gods before me. 5 |
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| 20 | 20 | | Thou shalt not make to thyself any graven images. 6 |
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| 21 | 21 | | Thou shalt not take the Name of the Lord thy God in 7 |
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| 22 | 22 | | vain. 8 |
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| 23 | 23 | | Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 |
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| 24 | 24 | | Honor thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be 10 |
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| 25 | 25 | | long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee. 11 |
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| 26 | 26 | | Thou shalt not kill. 12 |
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| 27 | 27 | | Thou shalt not commit adultery. 13 |
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| 28 | 28 | | Thou shalt not steal. 14 |
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| 29 | 29 | | Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor. 15 |
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| 30 | 30 | | Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, thou shalt 16 |
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| 31 | 31 | | not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his 17 SB 643 2 |
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| 32 | 32 | | maidservant, nor his cattle, nor anything that is thy 18 |
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| 33 | 33 | | neighbor's." 19 |
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| 34 | 34 | | 2. Beginning on January 1, 2026, each school 20 |
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| 35 | 35 | | district's school board and charter school's governing board 21 |
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| 36 | 36 | | shall display the Ten Comman dments in each building and 22 |
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| 37 | 37 | | classroom under the school board's or governing board's 23 |
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| 38 | 38 | | jurisdiction, subject to at least the following requirements: 24 |
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| 39 | 39 | | (1) The nature of such display shall be determined by 25 |
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| 40 | 40 | | each school board and governing board; 26 |
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| 41 | 41 | | (2) Such display shall be composed of, at a minimum, a 27 |
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| 42 | 42 | | poster or framed document that is at least eleven inches by 28 |
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| 43 | 43 | | fourteen inches; and 29 |
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| 44 | 44 | | (3) The text of the Ten Commandments shall be the 30 |
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| 45 | 45 | | central focus of the poster or framed document and shall be 31 |
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| 46 | 46 | | printed in a large, easily readable font. 32 |
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| 47 | 47 | | 3. (1) A school board or governing board may spend 33 |
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| 48 | 48 | | the board's moneys or donated moneys to purchase the 34 |
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| 49 | 49 | | displays. 35 |
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| 50 | 50 | | (2) A school board or governing board may accept 36 |
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| 51 | 51 | | donated displays. 37 |
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| 52 | 52 | | (3) This section shall not be construed to require a 38 |
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| 53 | 53 | | school board or governing board to spend the board's moneys 39 |
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| 54 | 54 | | to purchase displays. 40 |
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| 55 | 55 | | 4. The state board of education may promulgate all 41 |
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| 56 | 56 | | necessary rules and regulations for the administration of 42 |
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| 57 | 57 | | this section. Any rule or portion of a rule, as that term 43 |
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| 58 | 58 | | is defined in section 536.010, that is created under the 44 |
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| 59 | 59 | | authority delegated in this section shall become effective 45 |
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| 60 | 60 | | only if it complies with and is subject to all of the 46 |
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| 61 | 61 | | provisions of chapter 536 and, if appl icable, section 47 |
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| 62 | 62 | | 536.028. This section and chapter 536 are nonseverable and 48 |
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| 63 | 63 | | if any of the powers vested with the general assembly 49 SB 643 3 |
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| 64 | 64 | | pursuant to chapter 536 to review, to delay the effective 50 |
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| 65 | 65 | | date, or to disapprove and annul a rule are subsequently 51 |
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| 66 | 66 | | held unconstitutional, then the grant of rulemaking 52 |
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| 67 | 67 | | authority and any rule proposed or adopted after August 28, 53 |
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| 68 | 68 | | 2025, shall be invalid and void. 54 |
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| 69 | 69 | | |
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