Yesterday, we described how legislation in Louisiana may be encouraging teachers to introduce religious material in science classes. But Louisiana is clearly not alone in recommending that its educators engage in constitutionally forbidden activities. Later that day, we were directed to a document suggesting that problems could be brewing in Idaho.

The document is a set of proposed resolutions crafted by the state Republican Party's Central Committee. Among those is Resolution 2015-P20, "A Resolution Supporting Bible Use in Idaho Public Schools." While the Bible could add value to a number of curricula (social studies, literature, and comparative religion, for example, all of which are named in the resolution), it's not widely recognized for being much help with plate tectonics. Yet the resolution also suggests that the Bible should be used in classes on astronomy, biology, geology, world geography, archaeology, music, and sociology. Somehow, chemistry and physics escaped the committee's notice.

While a resolution like this is a long way from becoming law, the Republican Party holds the governorship and large majorities in both houses of the legislature, so there is a heightened risk.

On the plus side, a number of state parties have had creationism as an official part of their platform for years without any laws getting passed. For example, the Minnesota Republican platform states, "Educators who discuss creation science should be protected from disciplinary action and science standards should recognize that there is controversy pertaining to the theory of evolution." That approach—prevent educational authorities from disciplining teachers who introduce religion—is the basis for a law that was passed in Tennessee.

It's also similar to Texas' state Republican platform:

Controversial Theories- We support objective teaching and equal treatment of all sides of scientific theories. We believe theories such as life origins and environmental change should be taught as challengeable scientific theories subject to change as new data is produced. Teachers and students should be able to discuss the strengths and weaknesses of these theories openly and without fear of retribution or discrimination of any kind.

But no state blatantly crosses constitutional lines as clearly as Oklahoma, where the same party's platform contains the following:

We believe that the scientific evidence supporting Intelligent Design and Biblical creation should be included in Oklahoma public schools curricula. And where any evolution theory is taught both should receive equal funding, class time, and material. Teachers should have the freedom to cover creation science without fear of intimidation or reprimand.

Believe it or not, there is good news here. Over the last four years, a number of state parties have dropped either creationist or "teach the controversy" language from their platforms. However, surveys show that over 10 percent of US high school teachers instruct their students in creationist ideas, and each year, there are a handful of bills introduced in state legislatures that promote this behavior. Further encouragements like these platforms and resolutions don't help.