Overview

• Senate Bill 10 mandates that every public elementary and secondary classroom display a framed Protestant version of the Ten Commandments measuring at least 16 by 20 inches.
• Five Protestant pastors, Islamic leaders and parents sued the Texas Education Agency and multiple school districts in federal court, arguing the law forces religious content on students in violation of the Establishment and Free Exercise Clauses.
• The ACLU of Texas, Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the Freedom From Religion Foundation have announced plans to challenge the law, citing Supreme Court precedent from Stone v. Graham.
• A three-judge panel of the Fifth Circuit recently blocked a comparable Louisiana mandate as facially unconstitutional, a decision that could influence the Texas case under the same jurisdiction.
• Governor Greg Abbott has pledged to defend the measure, referencing his prior Ten Commandments victory as attorney general, while opponents warn it will marginalize non-Protestant students and infringe parental rights.