The Mormon Church has agreed to pay a $5000 fine for failing to report some campaign staff contributions it made in support of Proposition 8, the 2008 ballot measure in California that outlawed same-sex marriage.
According to the Los Angeles Times, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been ordered a $5,539 fine to California’s Fair Political Practices Commission for failing to properly report contributions to help the “Yes on 8” committee.
The fine comes in response to a complaint filed in November 2008 by Fred Karger, a gay-rights activist and co-founder of Californians Against Hate, who accused the Mormon Church of failing to report the value of the work it did to support Proposition 8.
“The investigation revealed that the church unintentionally failed to file daily reports detailing approximately $37,000 in non-monetary contributions,” a statement on the church’s website read. “The amount of contributions not reported represented the cost of staff time spent by church employees on activities to help the Yes on 8 committee during the final two weeks of the election.”
Karger said Tuesday the fine validates his allegations that the LDS Church tried to “cover up” its role in banning same-sex marriage in California.
