MADISON, Wis. (AP) - More than half of the counties in Wisconsin are issuing marriage licenses to gay couples.

County clerk offices in 42 of the state's 72 counties told The Associated Press on Monday that they were issuing licenses. Clerks in a few counties did not answer phone calls.

Many county clerks also are waiving the state's five-day waiting period so couples can marry in what may be a short window before ceremonies are halted by a court order.

Hundreds of couples have married since Friday when U.S. District Judge Barbara Crabb declared the state's ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional.

Republican Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen has asked an appeals court to stop the marriages while he appeals Crabb's decision.