Same-sex Marriage in Maryland - Legislative Action - Civil Marriage Protection Act - Referendum

Referendum

The Civil Marriage Protection Act was reintroduced to the General Assembly on January 23, 2012. The new version of the bill contained provisions that more explicitly protects religious leaders, institutions, and their programs from legal action if they refuse to officiate or provide facilities for a same-sex marriage or couple as a matter of their doctrine. During the legislative process, several high-profile political figures attempted to persuade legislators to vote in favor of the bill, including former President Bill Clinton, former Vice President Dick Cheney, Terry McAuliffe, and Ken Mehlman. The House of Delegates passed the bill with a 72–67 vote on February 17, 2012 and the Senate passed with a 25–22 vote on February 23, 2012. To secure support from some lawmakers who desired to submit the law to public referendum, the bill was amended to take effect on January 1, 2013.

Governor O'Malley signed the bill on March 1, 2012. In June 2012, referendum supporters submitted 109,313 valid signatures to the state secretary, more than the 55,736 required for a ballot in Maryland. The language of Referendum Question 6 informed voters that the Civil Marriage Protection Act would allow same-sex couples to obtain a civil marriage license, protect clergy from having to perform any particular marriage ceremony in violation of their religious beliefs, and affirm that each religious faith has exclusive control over its own theological doctrine regarding who may marry within that faith. On November 6, 2012, the measure passed with 52.4% of the vote. On November 29, 2012, the attorney general issued a legal opinion stating that court clerks could accept applications for same-sex marriage licenses immediately and issue them on December 6, 2012, as long as the effective date on the licenses specified January 1, 2013. 21 out of the 24 counties in Maryland chose to issue the licenses ahead of schedule.