First Reading

              ILLINOIS GENERAL ASSEMBLY LEGISLATIVE RESEARCH UNIT
Volume 21, No. 2
Abstracts of Reports Required to be
Filed With General Assembly..........2
Inside this Issue
January 2008
“Moment of Silence”
Laws Are Common —
and Controversial
A 2007 Illinois law requires a “brief period of silence” at the start of each school day. The law has been challenged in a federal court, where a judge issued a preliminary injunction barring the State Board of Education from implementing it. At least 32 other states require or permit public schools to have a moment of silence during each school day.
History of Illinois Law
A 1969 Illinois law said a public school teacher could observe a brief period of si­lence at the start of each school day with the participation of all students. The law added that the period of silence “shall not be conducted as a religious exercise but shall be an opportunity for silent prayer or for silent reflection on the anticipated activities of the day.” A section added in 2002 allowed public school students to voluntarily engage in prayer that is not endorsed by the school. The 2007 law (enacted over a veto) made a period of silence mandatory and took effect October 11, 2007.
In November 2007, Robert Sherman sued on behalf of his daughter in Chicago federal district court for a preliminary injunction to prevent her school district and the State Board from implementing a mandatory period of silence. He argued that the law is unconstitutionally vague, and that it violates the Establishment of Re­ligion clause of the First Amendment. A judge granted a preliminary injunction, and the case remains pending.
House Bill 4180 (Fritchey-Eddy-Black-Pritchard), introduced in November 2007, would amend the law to say that a public school teacher “may conduct” rather than “shall observe” a period of silence, and that such a period may be used for si­lent reflection as desired by each student. The statement that the period of silence may be used for silent prayer would be removed, and the law would be renamed the “Student Silent Reflection Act.” House Bill 4186 (W.Davis) would change the law’s title to the “Student Silent Reflection Act” but make no substantive change. Neither bill has been assigned to a substantive committee.
Other States’ Laws
At least 32 other states permit or require public schools to have a moment of si­lence in each school day. The provision is mandatory in 14 of them:
Alabama Nevada Tennessee
Connecticut New Jersey Texas
Georgia Oklahoma Virginia
Indiana Rhode Island West Virginia
Massachusetts South Carolina
The laws of New Jersey and West Vir­ginia were held unconstitutional, but have not been repealed.
The other 18 states permit a moment of silence at teachers’ or school offi­cials’ discretion:
Arizona Louisiana New York
Arkansas Maine North Carolina
Delaware Maryland North Dakota
Florida Michigan Ohio
Kansas Mississippi Pennsylvania
Kentucky New Mexico Utah
Among the 32 other states with “mo­ment of silence” laws, 16 specify its length as 1 minute or up to 1 minute. Delaware and Florida permit up to 2 minutes. Laws of the remaining 14 states, like Illinois, do not say how long the moment should be. Twelve states list prayer among the acceptable uses of a moment of silence; the others either list activities such as meditation or reflection, or do not specify any purpose. q
Sarah E. Franklin
Research Associate