North Dakota’s school boards already have a state law that gives them the ability to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms, if they are accompanied by other historical documents. Now, lawmakers are debating whether to require posting the commandments in every public K-12 and college classroom.

The debate is among advocates who say the Ten Commandments provide a foundation of morals and values — and that teaching them in schools was once broadly accepted — and opponents who say the compulsory posting of them in public classrooms would violate the U.S. Constitution’s ban on establishing a state religion. 

One of the bill’s sponsors, Sen. Mark Enget, R-Powers Lake, said the commandments are historically and morally important outside of their Christian religious context. “They are pure and good and build strong families which in turn build a strong society,” said Enget.

The House Judiciary Committee is reviewing House Bill 1145, which would require posting the Ten Commandments in the state’s public K-12 and college classrooms. The panel held a hearing Jan. 14 and did not make an immediate recommendation about whether the bill should be approved or defeated. Dozens of interested people have posted testimony on the Legislature’s website, with the majority being opposed to the bill. Dozens of people also attended the hearing in person, although time limits prevented many of them from testifying.

Bill sponsor Rep. Jeff Hoverson, R-Minot, told the North Dakota Monitor he plans to introduce an amendment this week that would change the bill to displaying the Ten Commandments in every school, rather than every classroom. His proposed amendment also would require the posters be funded through donations.

During last week’s hearing, Tim Barton, president of WallBuilders, a Texas-based organization that promotes the teaching of Christian history, said the Ten Commandments were taught in schools until after a 1971 U.S. Supreme Court case, called Lemon v. Kurtzman.

The Supreme Court has since reinterpreted aspects of the “Lemon test.” In a 2022 case, Kennedy v. Bremerton, the Supreme Court ruled the establishment clause should be interpreted by reference to historical practices and understandings. 

In light of the Kennedy ruling, House Bill 1145 would not violate the First Amendment, because there is a long history and tradition of the Ten Commandments being taught in schools, argued Janice Lorrah of the Pacific Justice Institute, a legal nonprofit that describes itself as focusing on defending civil liberties.

“The passage of HB 1145 will enable students in the state of North Dakota to know the history and traditions of our legal system,” said Lorrah. 

KrisAnn Norby-Jahner, legal counsel for North Dakota School Boards Association, and other opponents said House Bill 1145 differs from the Kennedy case, which was filed after a football coach was fired for praying with his players after a game. 

“A school employee choosing to exercise a constitutional right is different from a public school being required to adopt and display a specific religious observation,” said Norby-Jahner.

Norby-Jahner said the language of the proposal is almost the same as a bill approved by the Louisiana legislature last year, which has been challenged in federal court. Last November, U.S. District Court Judge John W. deGravelles ruled the law was unconstitutional, saying the Louisiana law did not provide “any constitutional way to display the Ten Commandments.”

Louisiana issues guidance as law requiring Ten Commandments in classrooms goes into effect

Cody Schuler, a spokesman for the American Civil Liberties Union, said many students in North Dakota practice different religious beliefs, and they may openly discuss them in school already. State law also gives school boards the ability to post the Ten Commandments in their classrooms already, he said.

However, under House Bill 1145, posting the Ten Commandments “would be not only endorsed by the school, it would be endorsed by the state, it would be the state showing preference to a particular religious tradition,” Schuler said.

Supporters of the legislation said the Ten Commandments would teach students about morality and values.

“There is a long-standing history and tradition of the Ten Commandments being used in education, not because it was a promotion of religion but a promotion of morality,” Barton said.

Pat Dean, a former school principal and advocate for the bill, said it was “rooted in history and morals, not religion and the changing thereof.” If students were instructed about the Ten Commandments, some of today’s student behavioral problems could be avoided, he said.

Olivia Data, of Mandan, said posting the Ten Commandments would not address urgent problems facing public schools.

“Surely issues like teacher shortages, equitable funding, or post-COVID behavioral and academic declines should take priority over what posters are displayed in the classroom,” Data said.

According to the bill, the Ten Commandments display must be a poster or framed document that is at least 11 by 14 inches and printed in a large and easily readable font.