HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION O


     February 8, 2000, Introduced by Reps. Bradstreet, Gosselin, Green, Voorhees, Hart, DeWeese, Sheltrown, Reeves, Wojno, Van
Woerkom, Kuipers, Bovin, Mortimer, Ehardt, Vander Roest, Bishop, Mead, Tabor, Middaugh, Allen, Gilbert, Garcia, Kukuk, Julian,
Mans, Stallworth, Daniels, Howell, Patterson, Jelinek, Bisbee, Pappageorge, Jansen, Byl, DeVuyst, Geiger, Stamas, Hager, Koetje,
Cameron Brown, Toy, DeRossett, Shulman, Vear, Birkholz and Lemmons and referred to the Committee on Constitutional Law and
Ethics.


        A joint resolution proposing an amendment to the state con-

   stitution of 1963, by amending section 4 of article I, to pre-

   serve the right to display the Ten Commandments on certain public

   property.

        Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the

   state of Michigan, That the following amendment to the state con-

   stitution of 1963, to preserve the right to display the Ten

   Commandments on certain public property, is proposed, agreed to,

   and submitted to the people of the state:

 1
                                  ARTICLE I

 2
           Sec. 4.  Every person shall be at liberty to worship God

 3
      according to the dictates of his own conscience.  No person shall

 4
      be compelled to attend, or, against his consent, to contribute to

 5
      the erection or support of any place of religious worship, or to

 6
      pay tithes, taxes or other rates for the support of any minister


   04122'99                                                 DMS
                                              2

 1
      of the gospel or teacher of religion.  No money shall be

 2
      appropriated or drawn from the treasury for the benefit of any

 3
      religious sect or society, theological or religious seminary; nor

 4
      shall property belonging to the state be appropriated for any

 5
      such purpose.  HOWEVER, PROPERTY BELONGING TO THE STATE MAY BE

 6
      USED TO DISPLAY THE TEN COMMANDMENTS, AND THE RIGHT TO DISPLAY

 7
      THE TEN COMMANDMENTS ON PROPERTY OWNED OR ADMINISTERED BY A

 8
      PUBLIC SCHOOL OR PUBLIC BODY IN THIS STATE IS NOT RESTRAINED OR

 9
      ABRIDGED. The civil and political rights, privileges and capac-

10
      ities of no person shall be diminished or enlarged on account of

11
      his religious belief.

12
           Resolved further, That the foregoing amendment shall be sub-

13
      mitted to the people of the state at the next general election in

14
      the manner provided by law.





























   04122'99          Final page.                            DMS