Opinion: (Mormon) church and state

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The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has been emphatic about its role in the Proposition 8 campaign. Yes, it strongly urged its members to donate to the Yes on 8 campaign to repeal the right of same-sex couples to marry, as well as encouraging them to volunteer for the campaign. But the actual donations of time and money came from Mormons, not the church. Gay-rights activist Fred Karger takes exception to that description, and now the state Fair Political Practices Commission is listening. Karger alleged that the church organized out-of-state phone banks to work on the campaign, and distributed thousands of the nearly-ubiquitous lawn banners as well as other campaign materials -- none of it reported as non-monetary contributions as the law would require.

The FPPC said it will investigate the allegations. If they’re found to have merit, the church could be fined for each infraction.