The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has been fined by California's Fair Political Practices Commission for failure to report nonmonetary contributions it made to the official campaign to pass Proposition 8 and outlaw marriage equality in California.
The amount of the fine is insignificant--totaling only $5,639--but according to Californians Against Hate, an organization which has extensively tracked the Church's involvement in denying the LGBT community its fundamental rights, it did earn the Church a dubious distinction, as it is now the first religious organization to be fined by the State of California for political malfeasance:
The late reporting charges were just one part of the complaint CAH filed November 13, 2008, shortly after the anti-marriage equality initiative passed, and followed-up with a supplemental complaint filed March 18, 2009, as more information became public.
"[The fine] seems a little light since [the FPPC] only looked at $36,000 of their contributions, but it's also historic because no church has ever been fined for illegal political activity in California before," said Fred Karger, CAH founder. "In fact, it's unprecedented."
For those interested in learning more about the influence of the LDS Church in passing Proposition 8, a documentary on the subject entitled 8: The Mormon Proposition is set for theatrical release later this week. I happened to attend an advance screening recently and can attest that it is well worth seeing.