Cuero and Yorktown Independent School Districts are in no jeopardy from a compliance investigation targeting Texas school districts that Attorney General Ken Paxton recently announced, according to local ISDs officials.
Paxton’s office announced the investigations into Texas ISDs across the state to “ensure the districts are displaying the Ten Commandments and have taken a board vote to allow prayer in schools.”
“I will 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,” said Attorney General Paxton, who is in a tight race with incumbent U.S. Sen. John Cornyn for the Republican Party nomination for the seat that will be decided May 26. “Texas schools districts must comply with Texas law by displaying the Ten Commandments and taking a school board vote regarding the implementation of prayer time in schools. I will never stop defending our students’ religious freedom and the moral foundation of our nation.”
CISD Interim Supt. Bill Hefner said the district is following state laws SB10 and SB11 regarding the display of biblical principles for moral and religious life and allowing prayers in school.
“The campuses have the Ten Commandments displayed in the classrooms. In addition, the board approved the prayer in school in a resolution on February 19, 2026.”
YISD also appears to be complying with the state laws. Brett Ckodre with the DeWitt County Republican Party donated Ten Commandments posters for all YISD classrooms on Sept.19, 2025, according to a Facebook post. And SB11 had a provision for an ISD to opt out, which the YISD Board of Trustees chose “because the law was too restrictive” and did before the March 2026 deadline, according to the office of YISD Supt. Gerald Nixon.
Most Texas school districts chose the opt-out provision because there was widespread opposition to the school prayer measure that set aside a specific time for voluntary prayer, according to published reports. Federal law already mandated silent time for prayer, they noted.
Paxton’s press release notes that SB 10 was passed by the Legislature during the 89th session and took effect Sept. 1, 2025. The law requires public schools to display donated copies of the Ten Commandments that meet certain specifications. Additionally, SB 11 was passed and became effective. It requires the board of trustees for ISDs to vote on whether to implement a designated time for prayer and reading of the Bible or other religious texts. As part of this investigation, the Office of the Attorney General has demanded that ISDs provide proof of a board vote on the implementation of SB 11. The demands issued to these schools also require them to produce documents regarding the display or lack thereof of the Ten Commandments and their policies regarding SB 10.
Specific ISDs named in Paxton’s press release about the investigation are Alamo Heights, North East, Austin, Cypress-Fairbanks, Lackland, Lake Travis, Fort Bend, Houston, Dripping Springs, Plano, Northside, Conroe, Galveston, Dallas, Fort Worth, Lubbock, Wichita Falls, McAllen, Amarillo, El Paso, Corpus Christi, United, Texarkana, Victoria, Waco, Abilene, San Angelo, Brownsville, and Beaumont.
This list of ISDs includes those that were previously involved in ongoing litigation regarding SB 10, the press release added. The litigation concluded with a decision that Attorney General Paxton secured from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit upholding the constitutionality of SB 10, allowing it to take effect statewide. Attorney General Paxton has also called on districts to put prayer back in schools following the enactment of SB 11.
