Oklahoma State Superintendent Ryan Walters is pushing forward with his plan to introduce Bibles into classrooms, opening bids Monday for a contract to supply 55,000 Bibles to the state’s Department of Education.

The move follows his long-held stance of incorporating the Bible into the educational environment, but the specifics of the bid have raised legal and ethical concerns.

According to the bid documents, the Bibles must adhere to strict requirements: they must be King James Version (KJV), include both the Old and New Testaments, and be bound in leather or leather-like material.

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Additionally, they must contain several American founding documents, including the Pledge of Allegiance, the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, and the Bill of Rights.

However, finding Bibles that meet these criteria has proven challenging. A salesperson from Mardel Christian & Education, a major supplier of Christian educational materials, reported that despite carrying 2,900 different Bibles, none met the bid’s specifications.

Yet, one Bible does: the God Bless the U.S.A. Bible—often referred to as the “Trump Bible”—endorsed by former President Donald Trump.

Priced at $60 each, this Bible is available online, with Trump receiving fees for his endorsement. Another option, the We The People Bible, endorsed by Donald Trump Jr., retails for $90.

The involvement of Trump-endorsed products has sparked criticism.

Colleen McCarty, Executive Director of the Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, expressed concerns about the bid process.

“The RFP on its face seems fair, but with additional scrutiny, we can see there are very few Bibles on the market that would meet these criteria, and all of them have been endorsed by former President Donald Trump,” McCarty said.

Former Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson weighed in, suggesting that the specifications could be legally questionable. “It appears to me that this bid is anything but competitive,” Edmondson said.

“It adds to the basic specification other requirements that have nothing to do with the text.

“The special binding and inclusion of government documents will exclude almost all bidders. If the bid specs exclude most bidders unnecessarily, I could consider that a violation.”

Beyond the potential legal and competitive issues, concerns about the cost have emerged. If the state opts for the God Bless the U.S.A. Bible at $60 per copy, the total expense for 55,000 Bibles would amount to $3.3 million.

Walters’ agency had requested $3 million from the Oklahoma Legislature as part of its fiscal year 2026 budget, specifically earmarked for Bible purchases, despite cheaper options being readily available.

Paperback versions of the New King James Version can be purchased for as little as $2.99, and free Bible apps are widely accessible.

Walters has frequently spoken about his desire to place Bibles in classrooms, though he has clarified that they would only be used in academic contexts, such as history or literature classes.

However, with only 43,000 classroom teachers in the state, many of whom do not teach these subjects, the request for 55,000 copies has drawn skepticism.

“We have talked about ensuring that our history courses include the role the Bible played throughout American history,” Walters said.

“We’ve talked about the efforts of left-wing groups and the teachers’ unions to drive the Bible out of school. I believe it’s important for historical context for our kids to understand the role the Bible played.”

The inclusion of government documents in the Bible has been another sticking point, with Walters explaining that while he does not want “extra things” added, items like the Constitution and the Magna Carta could be valuable historical references.