Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin signed an executive order on Tuesday for new marriage licenses statewide that will no longer require county clerks' names to appear on them.
The name removal is an attempt to protect the religious beliefs of Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis and other local elected officials, according to Bevin, now that same-sex marriage is legal across the nation.
Kentucky has been at the center of controversy after Davis refused to issue marriage licenses to same sex couples, despite a historic Supreme Court ruling that legalized same-sex marriages across the country.
"To ensure that the sincerely held religious beliefs of all Kentuckians are honored I took action to revise the Clerk marriage license form," wrote Bevin in a series of tweets. "Through today's Executive Order the name of the County Clerk is no longer required to appear on the revised marriage license form."
In a news release Tuesday, Bevin said he has issued an executive order directing the Kentucky Department of Libraries and Archives to issue the revised marriage license forms to all county clerks across the state.
Davis, citing "God's authority," refused for weeks to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, and later any couples. When Davis repeatedly refused, a judge issued a court order demanding she fulfill her job.
Davis was jailed for five days in September after being found in contempt of court for refusing.
Davis and Bevin, who is a Republican, have met before. He was a vocal supporter of her, which helped him to appeal to religious conservative voters in the state. Davis even attended the governor's public swearing-in ceremony earlier this month.
At the time, Davis said that the new licenses without the clerk's name would satisfy her conscience and potentially end the long-running issue.
Davis was a Democrat but recently changed to the Republican party. Her attorney, Mat Staver, said in a statement there was "no question" that Davis and the question of religious freedom played a role in Bevin's victory.
Additional information from the Associated Press.