LANSING, MI – Legislation to require Michigan’s public school classrooms to display the U.S. flag and to offer a chance to say the Pledge of Allegiance is headed to Gov. Rick Snyder.

The bills were given final approval in the state Senate on Thursday by 36-2 and 32-6 votes. The bills already had been approved in the House.

The bills require public schools to display a United States flag in each classroom or other site in which students say the Pledge of Allegiance. Starting next school year, an opportunity to recite the pledge must be provided to students each school day.

Students could not be forced to say the pledge against their will.

More than 40 states require public schools to offer students a chance to say the pledge, according to an analysis from the House Fiscal Agency. The Michigan bills are sponsored by Sen. Roger Kahn, R-Saginaw, and Rep. Kevin Cotter, R-Mount Pleasant.

The proposal has drawn some concern from those saying Michigan doesn't need a law to follow a tradition that many schools already practice. The Associated Press has reported that some districts consider it another unfunded mandate passed along from the Legislature to local schools.

Cotter has said there are schools not offering children the chance to recite the pledge, and classrooms without the flag -- even though it's the place where they are learning about history and the flag. The lawmaker has said if school districts think providing a flag is an unfair expense, he’d like to organize a private donation program to buy flags for classrooms.

In the Michigan House, Rep. Vicki Barnett – a Democrat from Farmington Hills – criticized the bills as an attempt to pander to voters rather than address problems facing the state.

Email Tim Martin at tmartin4@mlive.com. Follow him on Twitter: @TimMartinMI