South Carolina 2025-2026 Regular Session Status: In Committee

H 3217 — Display of Ten Commandments in public schools

Last action — Member(s) request name added as sponsor: Pope

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  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed House
  4. 4
    Passed Senate
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the House. Introduced December 05, 2024. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the House.

Prognosis

Stalled 24% · moderate confidence

Where this bill stands today.

Odds of enactment

Low

How often bills like it became law.

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 14 sponsors

    14 primary, 0 co-sponsors signed on.

Prognosis reads this bill's own signals — stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes and cross-state momentum. Odds come from a model trained on which bills have become law.

Summary

A BILL TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY ADDING SECTION 59-1-315 SO AS TO PROVIDE EACH PUBLIC ELEMENTARY, MIDDLE, OR SECONDARY SCHOOL IN THIS STATE SHALL DISPLAY IN A CONSPICUOUS PLACE IN EACH CLASSROOM OF THE SCHOOL A POSTER OR FRAMED COPY OF THE TEN COMMANDMENTS THAT MEETS CERTAIN SPECIFIED REQUIREMENTS, AND TO PROVIDE FOR THE ACQUISITION OF SUCH POSTERS AND DONATIONS OF SURPLUS POSTERS.

Bill Text

What changed in the latest version

82 added · 2 removed

Plain-language change summary

The updated version of Bill H 3217 requires that all public elementary, middle, and secondary schools in South Carolina display a poster or framed copy of the Ten Commandments in each classroom. This poster must be legible from anywhere in the room. This change is significant as it emphasizes the incorporation of religious texts into public educational spaces, which may influence discussions on freedom of religion and the separation of church and state.

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2025-2026 Bill 3217 Text of Previous Version (Dec.
06, 2024) - South Carolina Legislature Online South Carolina General Assembly126th Session, 2025-2026Bill 3217Indicates Matter StrickenIndicates New Matter(Text matches printed bills.
Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)                 A bill   TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY ADDING SECTION 59-1-315 SO AS TO PROVIDE EACH PUBLIC ELEMENTARY, middle, OR SECONDARY SCHOOL IN THIS STATE SHALL DISPLAY IN A CONSPICUOUS PLACE IN EACH CLASSROOM OF THE SCHOOL A POSTER OR FRAMED COPY OF THE TEN COMMANDMENTS THAT MEETS CERTAIN SPECIFIED REQUIREMENTS, AND TO PROVIDE FOR THE ACQUISITION OF SUCH POSTERS AND DONATIONS OF SURPLUS POSTERS.
  Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
  SECTION 1.  Article 5, Chapter 1, Title 59 of the S.C.
Code is amended by adding:
      Section 59-1-315.  (A) Each public elementary, middle, or secondary school in this State shall display in a conspicuous place in each classroom of the school a poster or framed copy of the Ten Commandments that meets the requirements of subsection (B).
    (B) A poster or framed copy of the Ten Commandments required in subsection (A) must include the text of the Ten Commandments as provided by subsection (C) in a size and typeface that is legible to a person with average vision from anywhere in the classroom in which the poster or framed copy is displayed.
    (C) The text of the poster or framed copy of the Ten Commandments required in subsection (A) must read as follows:
           THE TEN COMMANDMENTS            I AM the LORD thy God.
           Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
           Thou shalt not make to thyself any graven images.
           Thou shalt not take the Name of the Lord thy God in vain.
           Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
           Honor thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.
           Thou shalt not murder.
           Thou shalt not commit adultery.
           Thou shalt not steal.
           Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.
           Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house.
           Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his cattle, nor anything that is thy neighbor's.
    (D) A public elementary or secondary school in which each classroom does not include a poster or framed copy of the Ten Commandments required in subsection (A) shall:
       (1) accept any offer of a privately donated poster or framed copy of the Ten Commandments provided that the poster or copy:
           (a) meets the requirements of subsection (B);
and            (b) does not contain any additional content;
and        (2) display the poster or framed copy as specified in subsection (A).
    (E) If a public elementary or secondary school has a poster or framed copy of the Ten Commandments in each classroom that does not meet the requirements of subsection (B), the school shall replace the posters or copies with posters or copies that meet the requirements of subsection (B) using public funds or by accepting a private donation.
    (F) A public elementary or secondary school shall offer a poster or framed copy of the Ten Commandments described by subsection (A) in the school's possession that is not needed for display in a classroom as a donation to another public elementary or secondary school.
  SECTION 2.  This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
----XX---- This web page was last updated on December 06, 2024 at 10:44 AM
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Action History

  1. Member(s) request name added as sponsor: Pope

  2. Member(s) request name added as sponsor: Yow

  3. Member(s) request name added as sponsor: C.Mitchell, Long, Oremus, Gibson, Lawson, Burns, Magnuson, Edgerton

  4. Member(s) request name added as sponsor: Vaughan

  5. Referred to Committee on Judiciary

  6. Introduced and read first time

  7. Referred to Committee on Judiciary

  8. Prefiled

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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14 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 156 not signed on

Sponsors (14)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (156)

156 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 156 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

civil-rights education
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does H 3217 do?
A BILL TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY ADDING SECTION 59-1-315 SO AS TO PROVIDE EACH PUBLIC ELEMENTARY, MIDDLE, OR SECONDARY SCHOOL IN THIS STATE SHALL DISPLAY IN A CONSPICUOUS PLACE IN EACH CLASSROOM OF THE SCHOOL A POSTER OR FRAMED COPY OF THE TEN COMMANDMENTS THAT MEETS CERTAIN SPECIFIED REQUIREMENTS, AND TO PROVIDE FOR THE ACQUISITION OF SUCH POSTERS AND DONATIONS OF SURPLUS POSTERS.
Who sponsors H 3217?
H 3217 is sponsored by Representative Thomas Beach, Representative Luke S. Rankin, Representative John R. McCravy III, Representative David Vaughan, Representative Cody T. Mitchell, Representative Steven Wayne Long, Representative Melissa Lackey Oremus, Representative Daniel Gibson, Representative M. Brian Lawson, Representative James Mikell "Mike" Burns, Representative Josiah Magnuson, Representative Sarita L. Edgerton, Representative Richard L. "Richie" Yow, and Representative Thomas E. "Tommy" Pope.
What is the current status of H 3217?
This bill is in committee in the House. Introduced December 05, 2024. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track H 3217?
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