Calif. Collects $300,000 From Political Campaign Found Guilty Of Ethics Violations

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California's political watchdog agency says it has collected $300,000 from one of two campaign committees accused of improperly reporting contributions in a case that prompted the largest ethics fine in state history.

The Fair Political Practices Commission said Friday that the committees also have agreed to repay $15 million in contributions, although much of the money might never be recovered because it was spent on the campaigns.

The groups spent heavily in the final days of the 2012 election, seeking to thwart Gov. Jerry Brown's successful tax initiative and pass a failed initiative that would have restricted the power of unions.

State investigators called the Small Business Action Committee and the California Future Fund "part of the 'Koch Brothers Network' of dark money," referring to the conservative billionaire brothers.