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Bill Summary · HB 16

Summary — HB 16: "General Assembly: In God We Trust - Display"

Status: Regular Message Sent to Senate (legislative actions indicate subsequent passage and governor signature on 9/17/2025)
Subject: General Assembly; Legislative Services Officer; Public; State symbols

Purpose / Intent

Require the Legislative Services Officer (LSO) to install and display the national motto "In God We Trust" in the chambers of the North Carolina General Assembly — specifically directly above and behind the dais of the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate — in a manner consistent with the historic/patriotic display that appears above the U.S. House Speaker’s dais.

Key provisions

  • Adds a new subsection to G.S. 120-32.1 directing the Legislative Services Officer to display the national motto "In God We Trust" directly above and behind:
    • the dais of the Speaker of the House of Representatives; and
    • the dais of the President of the Senate.
  • Requires the display to be consistent with the historic/patriotic presentation of that motto in the United States House of Representatives chamber.
  • Funding mechanics:
    • The LSO must first use any privately gifted or otherwise provided funds for the installation.
    • To the extent gifts received are deemed unappropriated funds, those funds are appropriated for this purpose.
    • If no gifts are provided within 90 days of the act’s effective date, the LSO may use available state funds to cover implementation costs.
  • Implementation responsibility: the Legislative Services Officer is charged with effectuating the display and covering associated costs according to the funding rules above.

Who is affected

  • Primary: Legislative Services Officer (administrative responsibility for procurement/installation).
  • Secondary: Members of the General Assembly and visitors to the House and Senate chambers (symbolic change to chamber decor).
  • Fiscal impact: expected to be minimal — one-time installation costs that can be covered by private donations or, if none are received within 90 days, by existing LSO/state funds.

Timeline / Effective date

  • The bill text specifies an effective date of July 1, 2025.
  • Legislative action summary in the materials shows the bill progressed through readings and committee and was ultimately signed by the Governor (recorded 9/17/2025). (Note: procedural dates in the provided materials span multiple entries; the implementation funding provision establishes a 90‑day waiting period for private gifts following the act’s effective date before the LSO may use state funds.)

Potential considerations

  • Fiscal: installation costs are likely small and one-time; the bill directs private funding be used first to minimize state expenditure.
  • Legal/constitutional: the requirement to display a religiously phrased national motto in legislative chambers could prompt public or legal commentary regarding the Establishment Clause. The summary does not take a position on that issue.

If you want, I can:
- Extract and present the exact statutory language added to G.S. 120‑32.1; or
- Track current procedural status in the legislature database most recently used by your office.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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