SB 307 Louisiana Senate · 2026 Regular Session

PUBLIC BUILDINGS/GROUNDS: Authorizes the educational display of the Ten Commandments as a historical document and monument. (8/1/26) (EN NO IMPACT See Note)

SB 307 would authorize the display of the Ten Commandments as a historical monument on Louisiana State Capitol grounds, alongside other documents like the Mayflower Compact and the Declaration of Independence. The bill requires that such displays include context documents explaining their historical significance to the legal and cultural heritage of Louisiana and the U.S., and mandates that private donations fund the monument without state cost. It references Supreme Court rulings (Van Orden v. Perry and American Legion v. American Humanists Association) that permit religious historical displays on government property when privately funded. The commissioner of administration would oversee the installation, with the bill explicitly prohibiting state funding for the monument.

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2026

Committee Review

May 2026

Senate Passage

May 2026

House Passage

May 2026

Signed into Law

May 2026

Introduced Feb 27, 2026 Signed May 29, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 3 comparisons

What changed between versions

SB307 Original → SB307 Act 487 · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill was enrolled and signed into law as Act 487, expanding the list of sponsors and formally adding a new provision to the statute. The most significant substantive change is the addition of a new subsection (K) to the legislative findings, which explicitly states that the law will not create an unfunded mandate on public agencies, clarifying that they are encouraged but not required to use free resources for displays. Additionally, the text was slightly edited to correct capitalization errors in the names of historical documents and to add the word 'therefore' for better flow.

Scope change

The bill's scope regarding the documents it covers remains the same, but the scope of legislative intent was clarified by adding a specific finding about funding mandates.

FISCAL

Added a new legislative finding (Subsection 15) explicitly stating the law does not create an unfunded mandate on public governing authorities.

TECHNICAL

Corrected capitalization in the list of historical documents (e.g., 'Mayflower Compact', 'Declaration of Independence') and added the word 'therefore' to improve sentence flow.

Updated the citation for the Supreme Court case 'Pleasant Grove City v. Summum' to include the correct year (2009 instead of 2006).

Floor votes · Senate May 5, 2026 · House May 19, 2026

How they voted

27–8

Passed · 5 other

Total votes 40

May 5, 2026

D Democratic12

3 Yea 7 Nay 2

58% Nay

R Republican28

24 Yea 1 Nay 3

85% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

May 20, 2026

Upper · Passed

Amendments proposed by the House read and concurred in by a vote of 26 yeas and 7 nays.

upper

May 19, 2026

Lower · Passed

Read third time by title, amended, roll called on final passage, yeas 74, nays 23. Finally passed, ordered to the Senate.

lower

May 13, 2026

Introduced

Reported without Legislative Bureau amendments.

lower

May 12, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported favorably (8-6). Referred to the Legislative Bureau.

lower

May 7, 2026

Committee

Read by title, under the rules, referred to the Committee on House and Governmental Affairs.

lower

May 5, 2026

Upper · Passed

Read by title, passed by a vote of 27 yeas and 7 nays, and sent to the House. Motion to reconsider tabled.

upper

Apr 22, 2026

Upper · Passed

Rules suspended. Reported with amendments.

upper

Mar 10, 2026

Committee

Read by title. Recommitted to the Committee on Education.

upper

Mar 10, 2026

Upper · Passed

Rules suspended. Recalled from Committee.

upper

Mar 9, 2026

Committee

Introduced in the Senate; read by title. Rules suspended. Read second time and referred to the Committee on Senate and Governmental Affairs.

upper

1 primary · 33 co-sponsors