Senators hear proposal to require display of Ten Commandments in Nebraska schools

By Brian Beach , Reporter Nebraska Public Media

Feb. 24, 2025, 5:21 p.m. ·

Gavel with Book of Exodus — Sen. Dave Murman's LB691 would require Nebraska public and private schools to display the Ten Commandments. (Photo by Adobe Stock)

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The Nebraska Legislature’s Education Committee heard a proposal Monday to require the display of the Ten Commandments in Nebraska schools.

Sen. Dave Murman’s bill, LB691, would mandate both public and private institutions to post the commandments in every elementary school classroom and middle and high school building. They would have to be written in a readable font on a document or poster at least 14 inches by 11 inches large.

Murman said the bill is about exposing students to historical wisdom, not proselytizing.

“The goal of this bill is not to force any religion on our students, but instead to expose our students to the very historical wisdom that inspired our founders, like President Washington," he said.

Murman said his legislation is modeled after Louisiana’s law, which passed last year and is currently facing legal challenges.

David Barton, a prominent Christian historian who has also testified in favor of similar bills in other states, cited several 2022 Supreme Court decisions which said longstanding religiously expressive monuments have a presumption of constitutionality.

"If you can show that something has a long standing traditional history practice, we're going to presume it's constitutional," Barton said. "And that is the new standard. So the hostility is gone."

Lincoln resident Tyler Lemberg was among those testifying against the bill during Monday’s hearing.

He said the bill is disrespectful to non-Christian Nebraskans and the commandments are not particularly relevant to the nation’s history.

“The 10 Commandments are no more an American institution than something like the code of Hammurabi, and they have no place in American public education," he said. "This bill, if passed, would definitely be blocked as law by the First Amendment. And lastly, this bill is not inclusive and shows that its proponents are not really interested in bettering Nebraska, but in playing a political game.”

The committee also heard proposals to require the display of the state and national motto and allow public schools to hire a chaplain.