Overview

• With Senate Bill 11 now in effect, school boards can adopt policies for daily voluntary prayer or reading religious texts, which cannot replace instructional time.
• Participation requires parental consent, and each district’s board must take a recorded vote on whether to adopt such a policy within six months after Sept. 1.
• The law directs the attorney general’s office to defend districts that implement approved policies and allows the office to recommend methods for compliance.
• In a statement promoting the new law, Paxton urged students to start with the Lord’s Prayer and said he wants classroom Bibles opened, Ten Commandments displayed, and prayers offered.
• A separate Ten Commandments display mandate remains partially blocked by a federal preliminary injunction covering 11 districts, which Paxton is appealing while telling other districts to comply.