The Washington State Senate passed landmark legislation late Wednesday granting gay and lesbian couples access to marriage.

Sen. Kevin Ranker, D-Orcas Island, spoke in strong support of the bill.

“I was taught that a family was not determined by the genders of the persons involved, but by the love and commitment that they shared. I was taught that every person is to be treated with respect and dignity,” he said. “Today, we stand ready to take a historic step toward extending the fundamental human rights and freedoms that we embrace in America to all of our citizens. We stand ready to ensure that all families are treated fairly.”

The bill, which had bipartisan support, passed in the Senate 28-21 late Feb. 1. The bill has already garnered enough support in the House after it moves through committees to pass and is expected to be on the governor’s desk early next week.