O'Malley said in a statement that that The Free State “will now be able to protect individual civil marriage rights and religious freedom equally”, adding, “All children deserve the opportunity to live in a loving, caring, committed, and stable home, protected equally under the law. The common thread running through our efforts together in Maryland is the thread of human dignity; the dignity of work, the dignity of faith, the dignity of family, the dignity of every individual.”
O'Malley says he will sign the bill into law during a signing ceremony on Monday, the 27th. The new law will take effect on January 1, 2013.
Anti-gay groups are already organizing to push for a referendum to amend the state constitution to ban marriage equality.
