AL legislators introduce bill to mandate prayer in school or face funding reductions
Alabama legislators have introduced an amendment to the Alabama Constitution of 2022 that would mandate all public K-12 schools to begin the school day with both the Pledge of Allegiance and a prayer rooted in Judeo-Christian values.
HB231 was introduced on February 6, 2025.
The amendment grants local school boards the authority to establish policies ensuring compliance with its requirements. Any violations can be reported to the State Superintendent of Education, who will initiate an investigation through the State Department of Education.
Schools or school boards that deliberately fail to comply may face a reduction of up to 25% of their state funding, withheld by the State Superintendent for the following school year.
Repeated violations could result in further funding cuts imposed by the legislature from the state's annual education budget.
If passed by the legislature, HB231 will be placed on the ballot for public voting as a proposed amendment to the Alabama Constitution.
While the bill does not specify an exact election date, constitutional amendments in Alabama are typically decided during statewide elections.
This means the measure would likely appear on the ballot in the next general election, expected in November 2026, unless a special election is scheduled earlier by lawmakers.
While the bill says that it allows the students to voluntarily recite the Pledge of Allegiance to the United States flag, it does not explicitly state whether participation in the prayer would be voluntary.
Given First Amendment protections and legal precedents regarding religious activities in public schools, this requirement could face legal challenges unless an opt-out provision is clarified.
The Supreme Court has ruled that states may permit voluntary prayer and religious expression but cannot mandate school-led prayer. Students are allowed to pray privately and participate in religious clubs outside of school hours.
In Massachusetts, students in public schools may participate in a voluntary prayer at the start of each school day, provided they have parental consent. The law also ensures that no funding will be withheld from the schools.
In North Dakota, students in both public and private schools are allowed to pray at any time before, during or after school. They can also discuss religion just as they would any other non-religious topic. Additionally, students can be excused for up to an hour each week to attend religious instruction at the request of their parent or guardian.
Jennifer Lindahl is a Breaking and Trending Reporter for the Deep South Connect Team for Gannett/USA Today. Connect with her on X @jenn_lindahl and email at jlindahl@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Alabama legislators want prayers in school with new bill introduction
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San Francisco Chronicle
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Authorities in El Salvador have targeted outspoken lawyers like Anaya, journalists investigating Bukele's alleged deals with gangs and human rights defenders calling for the end of a three-year state of emergency, which has suspended fundamental civil rights. Some say they have been forced to flee the country. 'They're trying to silence anyone who voices an opinion — professionals, ideologues, anyone who is critical — now they're jailed.' Quintanilla said. 'It's a vendetta.' Bukele's office did not respond to a request for comment. 'I don't care if you call me a dictator' Observers see a worrisome escalation by the popular president, who enjoys extremely high approval ratings due to his crackdown on the country's gangs. By suspending fundamental rights, Bukele has severely weakened gangs but also locked up 87,000 people for alleged gang ties, often with little evidence or due process. A number of those detained were also critics. 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'Of course I'm scared,' Anaya told the broadcast anchor. 'I think that anyone here who dares to speak out, speaks in fear.' While some of Bukele's most vocal critics, like Anaya and López, have been publicly detained, other human rights defenders have quietly slipped out of the country, hoping to seek asylum elsewhere in the region. They declined to comment or be identified out of fear that they would be targeted even outside El Salvador. Fear and an ally in Trump Last month, a protest outside of Bukele's house was violently quashed by police and some of the protesters arrested. He also ordered the arrest of the heads of local bus companies for defying his order to offer free transport while a major highway was blocked. In late May, El Salvador's Congress passed a 'foreign agents' law, championed by the populist president. It resembles legislation implemented by governments in Nicaragua, Venezuela, Russia, Belarus and China to silence and criminalize dissent by exerting pressure on organizations that rely on overseas funding. Verónica Reyna, a human rights coordinator for the Salvadoran nonprofit Servicio Social Pasionista, said police cars now regularly wait outside her group's offices as a lingering threat. 'It's been little-by-little,' Reyna said. 'Since Trump came to power, we've seen (Bukele) feel like there's no government that's going to strongly criticize him or try to stop him.' Trump's influence extends beyond his vocal backing of Bukele, with his administration pushing legal boundaries to push his agenda, Reyna, other human rights defenders and journalists said. The U.S. Embassy in El Salvador, which once regularly denounced the government's actions, has remained silent throughout the arrests and lingering threats. It did not respond to a request for comment. In its final year, the Biden administration, too, dialed back its criticism of the Bukele government as El Salvador's government helped slow migration north in the lead up to the 2024 election. On Tuesday, Quintanilla visited Anaya in detention for the first time since his arrest while being watched by police officers. Despite the detention, neither Anaya nor Quintanilla have been officially informed of the charges. Quintanilla worries that authorities will use wide ranging powers granted to Bukele by the 'state of emergency' to keep him imprisoned indefinitely. Journalists stranded Óscar Martínez, editor-in-chief of news site El Faro, and four other journalists have left the country and are unable to return safely, as they face the prospect of arrest stemming from their reporting. At a time when many other reporters have fallen silent out of fear, Martínez's news site has investigated Bukele more rigorously than perhaps any other, exposing hidden corruption and human rights abuses under his crackdown on gangs. In May, El Faro published a three-part interview with a former gang leader who claimed he negotiated with Bukele's administration. Soon after, Martínez said the organization received news that authorities were preparing an arrest order for a half-dozen of their journalists. This has kept at least five El Faro journalists, including Martínez, stranded outside their country for over a month. On Saturday, when the reporters tried to return home on a flight, a diplomatic source and a government official informed them that police had been sent to the airport to wait for them and likely arrest them. The journalists later discovered that their names, along with other civil society leaders, appeared on a list of 'priority objectives" held by airport authorities. Martínez said Anaya's name was also on the list. Now in a nearby Central American nation, Martínez said he doesn't know when he will be able to board another flight home. And if he does, he doesn't know what will happen when he steps off. 'We fear that, if we return — because some of us surely will try — we'll be imprisoned,' he said. 'I am positive that if El Faro journalists are thrown in prison, we'll be tortured and, possibly, even killed." ____ Janetsky reported from Mexico City. ____ Follow AP's coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at
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