Oklahoma representative files bill that would require schools to display Ten Commandments

Jan. 2—Legislators have begun filing bills ahead of the 2024 legislative session — and one of those bills focused on returning the Ten Commandments to Oklahoma public school classrooms.

Representative Jim Olsen, R-Roland, filed House Bill 2962 on Dec. 29, a bill that would require every public school to display a 16-inch-by-20-inch durable poster or framed copy of the Ten Commandments in each classroom.

If passed, public schools would be required to begin displaying the Ten Commandments in the 2024-25 school year.

"The Ten Commandments is one of the foundations of our nation," Olsen said in a press release. "Publicly and proudly displaying them in public school classrooms will serve as a reminder of the ethics of our state and country as students and teachers go about their day. It is my prayer that this display would inspire our young people during their formative years and encourage them to lead moral, principled lives."

The bill, which would be codified in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 24-106.2 of Title 70, states that, "A poster or framed copy of the Ten Commandments required by subsection A of this section shall: 1. Include the text of the Ten Commandments as provided by subsection C of this section 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."

The bill further states that schools may accept offers of privately donated posters or framed copies, "provided that the poster or copy: a. meets the requirements of subsection B of this section, and b. does not contain any additional content." Schools may also replace posters or framed copies that do not meet the requirements with "privately donated posters or copies."

State Superintendent Ryan Walters issued a statement Tuesday in support of the legislation filed by Olsen.

"Representative Olsen and I share the same belief that the Ten Commandments must, and should be, on display as a founding document of our country. Our country is founded on Judeo-Christian values, and we should place a priority on learning about this important historical precedent," Walters said. "The breakdown in classroom discipline over the past 40 years is in no small measure due to the elimination of the Ten Commandments as guideposts for student behavior. I will continue to fight against state-sponsored atheism that has caused society to go downhill."

In 1980, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled (5-4) in Stone v. Graham that a Kentucky statute requiring school officials to post a copy of the Ten Commandments in public school classrooms violated the First Amendment's Establishment Clause — commonly interpreted as a separation of church and state.

In 2016, State Question 790 sought to remove Article 2, Section 5 of the Oklahoma Constitution, which prohibited government from using public money or property for the direct or indirect benefit of any religion or religious institution, and was interpreted by the Oklahoma court to require the removal of a Ten Commandments monument from State Capitol grounds.

HB 2962, if passed, would become effective July 1.