The Louisiana State House has passed a bill that could protect military monuments from being removed or altered, including statues that honor Confederate soldiers and leaders.

The bill passed with a vote of 65-31 after two hours of heated debate on Monday, though all 24 members of the state Legislative Black Caucus voted against it.

The bill, which still has to go through the Louisiana State Senate, would need a popular vote before military memorials are 'altered, removed, relocated, or destroyed', by local governments according to the New Orleans Times-Picayune.

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The Louisiana State House has passed a bill that could protect military monuments from being removed or altered, including statues that honor Confederate soldiers and leaders like PGT Beauregard, pictured. The City of New Orleans voted in 2015 to remove this statue and if the new bill is passed in the House Senate, the Beauregard statue will likely still be removed

There were four Confederate statues in New Orleans, but two have been removed since the end of April. The Liberty Monument, left, was taken down on April 24 and the statue of Jefferson Davis, right, was taken down on May 11. Workers are pictured wearing masks and bullet-proof vests

Though there is no specific date for the removal of the Beauregard statue or the statue of Robert E Lee, pictured, New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu had previously said that the four statues would be removed 'anytime, sooner rather than later'

The bill was sponsored by Rep Thomas Carmody Jr (R), who called the bill 'a perfect exercise of democracy'.

'It allows for the people to have their input in the decision to remove military monuments from the public spaces in which they live,' Carmody said, according to CBS News.

He also said he wants to protect Southern heritage, according to The Advocate.

During the two-hour debate, Carmody was the only representative to speak in favor of the bill while ten representatives spoke against it, the paper said.

Rep Gary Carter (D) argued:'In my city, the City of New Orleans, should we have a statue or memorial for someone who fought for my enslavement? Who fought for my disenfranchisement? That's what you're saying, that those people ought to be honored and recognized.'

After the vote was called, the entire Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus walked off the House floor in protest.

'It was disgusting. We just couldn't stay. You have to stand for something,' caucus member Rep. Terry Landry (D) told the Advocate.

The bill was sponsored by Rep Thomas Carmody Jr (R), pictured left, who called the bill 'a perfect exercise of democracy'. Rep Gary Carter (D), right, argued during the two-hour debate that the bill is trying to honor people 'who fought for my enslavement'. Carmody was the only representative who spoke in support of the bill

After the vote was called, the entire Louisiana Legislative Black Caucus walked off the House floor in protest. Caucus member Terry Landry (D) pictured in 2014, called the bill's passing 'disgusting'

According to The Advocate, Carmody said that even if the bill is passed in the Senate, it is unlikely it will stop the last of four Confederate monuments from being removed in New Orleans.

The City Council voted in 2015 to have the monuments removed, but because of legal battles, none were removed until three weeks ago. The Liberty Monument was removed April 24 and the statue of Jefferson Davis was taken down May 11.

The Liberty Monument, an 1891 obelisk, honored the Crescent City White Leage, which attempted to overthrow a biracial Reconstruction government in New Orleans after the Civil War. The attempt failed, but white supremacist Democrats later took control of the state.

The Jefferson Davis statue was erected in 1911 to honor the Confederate president.

Both statues were taken down in the early hours of the morning to avoid disruption and workers wore bullet-proof vests with police watching on in case protesters got out of hand.

New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu had said earlier that the four Confederate statues, including the still-standing Robert E Lee and PGT Beauregard statues would come down 'anytime, sooner rather than later,' according to ABC News.

'These monuments have stood not as historic or educational markers of our legacy of slavery and segregation, but in celebration of it. I believe we must remember all of our history, but we need not revere it,' Landrieu said in a statement Thursday, according to the site.

When the Jefferson Davis monument, pictured, was taken down Thursday, the mayor said: 'These monuments have stood not as historic or educational markers of our legacy of slavery and segregation, but in celebration of it. I believe we must remember all of our history, but we need not revere it'

A demonstrator that supports keeping confederate-era monuments in place yells as workers dismantle the Liberty Place monument in New Orleans on April 24