Ehrlich Might Offer Bill Giving Gay Couples Rights

Governor Vetoed Similar Measure Friday

Maryland Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. said yesterday that he might introduce a bill next year that would seek to accomplish some of the same aims as legislation he vetoed Friday that would have granted certain rights to unmarried partners, including gay couples.

"We may very well put in our own bill next year," Ehrlich (R) said during a radio interview on Baltimore's WBAL.

The legislation, approved by the Democrat-controlled General Assembly, would have granted nearly a dozen rights to couples that register with the state, including authority over certain medical and funeral-related decisions for one another.

He suggested that his approach would build upon existing legal tools such as advance medical directives, which allow residents to designate someone to make medical decisions for them.

Gay rights activists who pushed for the bill argued that it included several rights not available through existing law.

Ehrlich stressed that his primary objection to the bill was a requirement that couples register with the state as "life partners."

"It is the predicate to domestic partnerships, which is the predicate to gay marriage," Ehrlich said. "I'm going to protect marriage. . . . It's not debatable."

Ehrlich, however, said he understands that there are "nontraditional relationships of all kinds."

Ehrlich also noted that he plans to sign two bills that have been opposed by some conservatives in his party.

One would add sexual orientation as a protected class to the state's hate crimes law. The other would require that schools report information about bullying, including instances motivated by sexual orientation.