The Oklahoma legislature has approved a measure that would allow local governments to display historically significant documents, including the Ten Commandments, on public grounds.
The bill, H.B. 2177, is now headed to the desk of Gov. Mary Fallin after it was passed by the House last week by a vote of 60-14. The bill cleared the Senate previously by a 39-3 vote.
Under the legislation, replicas of documents such as the Ten Commandments, Magna Carta, the U.S. Constitution, the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights will be allowed to be displayed on the grounds of public buildings.
Sen. Michael Bergstrom (R-Adair), who supported the measure, argued that documents that have historical significance should not be banned just because they mention God.
"If we're going to ban a document of this historic importance because it speaks of God, then we need to ban the Declaration of Independence," he said during the debate in late April, according to Public Radio Tulsa.
He contended that the Gettysburg Address and Pledge of Allegiance would also have to be banned. "Obviously, each of these bans would be ludicrous," he added.
The bill includes a provision that authorizes Oklahoma's attorney general to defend the constitutionality of the law in court.
Senate Minority Leader John Sparks (D-Norman) tried to add a provision that would take the legal costs of defending the bill from road funds in the district of the authors.
"If it is important enough for certain members to push a certain issue, those members should be willing to bear the cost," he said, according to Tulsa World.
Sparks' proposal, however, was rejected by a vote of 7-33. Sen. Casey Murdock (R-Felt) argued that the measure will not be found unconstitutional because it requires the display of other historical documents along with The Ten Commandments.
The bill, authored by Rep. John Bennett (R-Sallisaw) and Sen. Joseph Silk (R-Broken Bow), was introduced last year in an apparent attempt to restore the Ten Commandments monument that was removed from the State Capitol.
The monument was taken down in 2015 after the Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled that it violates the state constitution's prohibition on the use of public property for religious purposes.
Sen. Kay Floyd pointed out that 60 percent of Oklahoma voters rejected a proposal to return the monument to the capitol in 2016.
"If we pass this bill today, are we not disagreeing with what we've been told by the voters that they want in the state of Oklahoma?" she asked.
