By: Little H.B. No. 1348
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the display of the Ten Commandments in public schools.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 1, Education Code, is amended by adding
Section 1.0041 to read as follows:
Sec. 1.0041. DISPLAY OF TEN COMMANDMENTS. (a) A public
elementary or secondary school shall display in a conspicuous place
in each classroom of the school a durable poster or framed copy of
the Ten Commandments that meets the requirements of Subsection (b).
(b) A poster or framed copy of the Ten Commandments
described by Subsection (a) must:
(1) include the text of the Ten Commandments as
provided by Subsection (c) in a size and typeface that is legible to
a person with average vision from anywhere in the classroom in which
the poster or framed copy is displayed; and
(2) be at least 16 inches wide and 20 inches tall.
(c) The text of the poster or framed copy of the Ten
Commandments described by Subsection (a) must read as follows:
"The Ten Commandments
I am the LORD your God.
1. You shall have no other gods before me.
2. You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything
in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below.
3. You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God.
4. Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.
5. Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in
the land the Lord your God is giving you.
6. You shall not murder.
7. You shall not commit adultery.
8. You shall not steal.
9. You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
10. You shall not covet your neighbor's house. You shall not covet
your neighbor's wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or
donkey, mor anything that belongs to your neighbor."
(d) A public elementary or secondary school in which each
classroom does not include a poster or framed copy of the Ten
Commandments as required by Subsection (a) must:
(1) accept any offer of a privately donated poster or
framed copy of the Ten Commandments provided that the poster or
copy:
(A) meets the requirements of Subsection (b); and
(B) does not contain any additional content; and
(2) display the poster or framed copy as specified in
Subsection (a).
(e) If a public elementary or secondary school has a poster
or framed copy of the Ten Commandments in each classroom that does
not meet the requirements of Subsection (b), the school may replace
the posters or copies with posters or copies that meet the
requirements of Subsection (b) using public funds or by accepting a
private donation.
(f) A public elementary or secondary school must offer a
poster or framed copy of the Ten Commandments described by
Subsection (a) in the school's possession that is not needed for
display in a classroom as a donation to another public elementary or
secondary school.
SECTION 2. This Act applies beginning with the 2025-2026
school year.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2025.