State House Committee Approves 10 Commandments Display

Associated Press

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- A plan to display the Ten Commandments on a monument at the state Capitol has cleared a state House committee.

The measure would authorize installation of a three-by-six-foot monument on the Capitol grounds at no expense to the state. Rep. Mike Ritze of Broken Arrow authored the bill and says he and his family will pay the estimated $10,000 cost of the project.

Ritze says he believes the nation has lost its moral compass and that the Ten Commandments is a reminder of basic values.

Rep. Wallace Collins of Norman says he believes placing a copy of the Ten Commandments on the Capitol grounds could be unconstitutional.

Oklahoma Legislature web site.

The measure was approved 8-3 by the state House General Government Committee and now goes to the full House for a vote.