ORLANDO, Fla. — Thousands of gay couples in Florida are waiting for the state to weigh in on whether county clerks should begin issuing same-sex marriage licenses on Jan. 5.
The upcoming decision stems from a lawsuit filed by a gay couple in Washington County, where a judge struck down Florida's gay marriage ban.
A federal judge has asked Florida officials to weigh in on if the Washington County judge's order covers the entire state, just Washington County or just the couple.
Orlando couple Robert Carner and Ken Terrell still plan to get married in January when the order goes into effect. But first they will have to find a county clerk who will issue the marriage license.
"We should have the same privileges as everyone. Everyone should be able to love whoever they want to love," said Terrell.
The plaintiffs in the lawsuit, Steve Schlairet and Ozzie Russ, will receive a marriage license in Washington County on Jan. 6, but they may be the only ones.
"We're not activists. Let me kind of clarify that, we're not. We're just ordinary people that think we saw something that was wrong," said Schlairet.
The Florida Department of Health, which records marriage license, and the Department of Management Services, which sets guidelines for state agencies, have been asked to weigh in on the case. Then the federal judge is expected to make a final ruling.
"It feels good to have this affect that we are able to make a change," said Russ.
The state has until the end of the day Monday to file with the federal judge. There is no timeline on when a final ruling will come down, but it is likely to come before Jan 5.