Federal Appeals Court Upholds Texas Law Requiring Ten Commandments Posters In Classrooms
A federal appeals court upheld a Texas law requiring Ten Commandments posters in public school classrooms. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a 9-8 en banc decision reversing a lower-court block and finding the law constitutional. Senate Bill 10, enacted in June 2025, requires each elementary and secondary classroom to display a durable Ten Commandments poster or framed copy. The court said students are not required to recite, believe, or affirm the Commandments and therefore are not coerced into religious observance.
The statute specifies a minimum poster size of 16 inches wide by 20 inches tall, readable typeface, and conspicuous placement. In practice some districts posted donated copies after the law took effect on Sept. 1, while roughly two dozen others had been blocked by injunctions. At least one suburban Dallas district spent nearly $1,800 to print roughly 5,000 posters when donations did not cover needs. Plaintiffs argued children were forced to "observe and venerate" a state-mandated version of the Commandments, but the majority rejected that claim in extended opinion passages. Judge Stephen A. Higginson wrote a dissent, joined by four other judges, warning the decision departs from the framers' disestablishment intent.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton hailed the ruling as a "major victory for Texas and our moral values," while the American Civil Liberties Union called the decision a violation of First Amendment principles. Reporting has shifted from early coverage of local injunctions and legal challenges to an emphasis on en banc 5th Circuit rulings in both Texas and Louisiana that may prompt a Supreme Court review. PBS and ABC drove much of that change by detailing the court's reasoning, the earlier 12-6 Louisiana decision, and how the combined cases set up a likely clash at the high court. Public response ranged from school board debates and teacher guidance on answering student questions to social media posts sharing donated poster deliveries and supporters' praise, and the ACLU and allied groups say they plan to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the decision.
📌 Key Facts
- On April 22, 2026, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, sitting en banc, upheld Texas Senate Bill 10 in a narrow 9-8 decision, ruling the classroom Ten Commandments display law does not violate the First Amendment.
- S.B.10, enacted in June 2025 and effective Sept. 1, requires each public elementary and secondary classroom to display a durable Ten Commandments poster or framed copy and prescribes display specifications (minimum 16 inches by 20 inches, easily readable typeface, conspicuous placement).
- The court's majority held the law does not coerce religious exercise — students are not required to recite, believe, or affirm the Commandments — and rejected plaintiffs' claims that children are forced to 'observe and venerate' a state‑mandated religious text.
- The ruling reversed lower‑court injunctions that had barred several Texas school districts from posting the displays; other districts had already posted or received donated posters after the law took effect.
- Reactions split along ideological lines: Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and bill author Sen. Phil King hailed the decision as a major victory for Texas and its values, while the ACLU and allied groups said the ruling violates First Amendment principles and said they expect to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.
- The 5th Circuit had earlier this year voted en banc (12-6) to lift a block on a similar Louisiana classroom Ten Commandments law; Louisiana's attorney general said the Texas opinion adopted that defense, and related measures have surfaced in other states (e.g., Alabama), setting up a likely Supreme Court clash.
- Implementation has already provoked local debate and logistics issues — school board disputes, teacher guidance on handling student questions, deliveries of donated posters — and at least one suburban Dallas district spent nearly $1,800 to print roughly 5,000 posters even though the statute technically requires posting only if posters are donated.
- The decision produced a sharp judicial split: a notable dissent by Judge Stephen A. Higginson, joined by four other judges, criticized the majority and underscored deep divisions on the court over church‑state separation.
📰 Source Timeline (5)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- Confirms the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the Texas Ten Commandments classroom law in a 9-8 en banc decision.
- Majority opinion emphasizes that students are not required to recite, believe, or affirm the Ten Commandments and therefore are not coerced.
- The ruling explicitly reverses a lower-court decision that had blocked about a dozen Texas school districts, including some of the state's largest, from posting the displays.
- Article notes Texas' 2024 approval of optional Bible-infused curriculum for elementary schools and an upcoming June vote on adding Bible stories to required reading lists, situating the ruling within a broader religious-in-schools push.
- American Civil Liberties Union and allied groups say they expect to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, framing the decision as trampling First Amendment church-state separation.
- Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton hails the ruling as 'a major victory for Texas and our moral values' and says 'it’s important that students learn from [the Ten Commandments] every single day.'
- Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill says the Texas decision 'adopted our entire legal defense' of Louisiana's similar law, and Alabama Governor Kay Ivey recently signed a related measure in that state.
- Details that the Texas law only requires posters if donated, but at least one suburban Dallas district spent nearly $1,800 to print roughly 5,000 posters anyway, showing non-donor funding.
- Describes how the mandate has already stirred school board debates, teacher guidance on how to answer student questions, and deliveries of donated posters around the state.
- A dissent by Judge Stephen A. Higginson, joined by four other judges, argues the framers intended 'disestablishm...' (dissent quoted in part, signaling sharp internal division).
- Confirms the case involves Texas Senate Bill 10, enacted in June 2025, requiring each public elementary and secondary classroom to display a durable Ten Commandments poster or framed copy.
- Details statutory requirements for the display, including minimum dimensions of at least 16 inches wide and 20 inches tall, easily readable typeface, and conspicuous placement.
- Quotes extended passages from the 5th Circuit opinion explaining why S.B. 10 does not, in the court's view, constitute an establishment of religion or coercive indoctrination.
- Clarifies that the court found S.B. 10 requires no religious exercise or observance and that students are not taught, required to recite, or pressured to affirm the Commandments.
- Provides the plaintiffs' argument that children are forced to 'observe and venerate' a state-mandated version of the Ten Commandments and the court's specific rejection of that claim.
- Reports the ACLU's post-ruling statement calling the decision a violation of fundamental First Amendment principles and contrary to binding Supreme Court precedent.
- Includes public comments from bill author Sen. Phil King, who frames the decision as a 'great day' for Texas and emphasizes the Ten Commandments' influence on Western and American legal codes.
- Clarifies that the 5th Circuit explicitly held the Texas Ten Commandments classroom display law does not violate the First Amendment.
- Reports a 12-6 en banc vote earlier this year by the same appeals court to lift a lower-court block on a similar Louisiana classroom Ten Commandments law.
- Notes that roughly two dozen Texas school districts had been barred by injunctions but others already posted the Ten Commandments after the law took effect on Sept. 1.
- Includes fresh reaction quotes from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton celebrating a 'major victory' and from ACLU-allied groups calling the ruling contrary to Supreme Court precedent.
- Frames the combined Texas and Louisiana cases as setting up a likely future clash at the U.S. Supreme Court over classroom Ten Commandments displays.