Texas AG Paxton opened investigations into roughly two dozen school districts to enforce Ten Commandments and prayer laws

On May 7, 2026, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton announced formal investigations into roughly two dozen public school districts across the state to enforce compliance with two 2025 laws: Senate Bill 10, which requires a 16-by-20-inch Ten Commandments display in every public-school classroom, and Senate Bill 11, which requires school boards to vote on setting aside time for prayer and the reading of religious texts. The districts named — including Dallas, Austin, Houston, Fort Worth, El Paso, Waco, and San Antonio-area systems — were ordered to produce proof of an SB 11 board vote and records regarding whether they display the Ten Commandments.

Paxton, then a candidate for U.S. Senate, said he would "always fight for students' fundamental right to pray in our schools" and work to ensure "that Texas kids are able to learn from the Ten Commandments daily." The investigations applied the enforcement power of the state's chief legal office to compel public schools to post a specific religious text and adopt prayer policies, following a January 2026 federal appeals-court ruling that allowed the Ten Commandments requirement to take effect.