Beginning with the 2025 – 2026 school year, Texas will require every public school to have a copy of the Ten Commandments displayed in its classrooms. Senate Bill 10 (SB 10), which was passed by the state legislature, awaits inevitable signing from Texas Governor Greg Abbott, who has already expressed the intent to sign the bill into law.
SB 10 mandates Texas’s public elementary and secondary schools to display a 16 x 20 inch poster of the Ten Commandments, placed somewhere conspicuously for students to see. The mandated text comes from the King James Version of the Bible.
The bill’s author, State Senator Phil King, recognizes the importance of the Ten Commandments in human history and made the following claim during a legislative session:
“Very few documents in the history of Western civilization, and even more so in American history, have had a larger impact on our moral code, and our legal code and just our culture than the Ten Commandments,” King said.
Districts may accept donated posters that fit the requirements, or use district funds to buy compliant posters.
The bill has sparked controversy and debate, with opponents claiming it is a violation of the principle of the separation of church and state and the First Amendment’s establishment clause. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) will sue the state of Texas over the alleged unconstitutionality of the soon-to-be law.
According to the ACLU, “S.B. 10 will co-opt the faith of millions of Texans and marginalize students and families who do not subscribe to the state’s favored scripture. We will not allow Texas lawmakers to divide communities along religious lines and attempt to turn public schools into Sunday schools. “
Texas Representative Candy Noble defended the bill in a manner similar to Senator King:
“Nothing is more deep-rooted in the fabric of our American tradition of education than the Ten Commandments. The way we treat others as a society comes from the principles found in the Ten Commandments,” Noble said.
Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick is also in favor of the bill and what it aims to restore:
“By placing the Ten Commandments in our public school classrooms, we ensure our students receive the same foundational moral compass as our state and country’s forefathers. I thank Sen. Phil King for carrying this key legislation,” Patrick said.
In January, TPUSA Frontlines reported on the need felt by many Texans to restore religion to Texas schools.
