Definition
PAC stands for Political Action Committee. A PAC is an organization formed to raise and spend money to elect or defeat candidates for public office. In U.S. federal law, a PAC is any political committee that is not a candidate's authorized committee and not a political party committee, that receives contributions or makes expenditures exceeding defined thresholds in connection with federal elections.
PACs occupy the central institutional role in American campaign finance law. They serve as the legal vehicle through which corporations, labor unions, trade associations, and other organized interests may participate in electoral politics — subject to limits on contribution sources and amounts set by federal statute and Federal Election Commission regulation.
Two major subtypes have emerged in modern usage:
1. Traditional PAC (also called a "connected PAC" or "hard money PAC"): Organized by a sponsoring entity (a corporation, union, or association) and subject to strict contribution limits. May give directly to candidate committees up to statutory limits, and may receive contributions only from eligible donors up to per-person limits.
2. Super PAC (formally, "independent expenditure-only committee"): May raise unlimited funds from corporations, unions, and individuals, but is legally prohibited from making direct contributions to or coordinating expenditures with candidate campaigns. Super PACs emerged from judicial decisions beginning in 2010 and are not defined by statute; they exist as a regulatory category.
Common Language
Modern common usage (Wiktionary): Abbreviation for "Pacific" (as in Pacific Ocean).
Historical common usage (Webster's 1913): A kind of moccasin having the edges of the sole turned up and sewed to the upper.
Neither common meaning has any relationship to the legal term. "PAC" in legal and political research contexts is exclusively the acronym for Political Action Committee. A researcher encountering "PAC" in any post-1970s legal, regulatory, or journalistic source should treat it as this acronym unless context clearly indicates otherwise.
Common Confusion
Super PAC vs. Traditional PAC: The two are frequently conflated in general discourse but are legally distinct in critical respects. Traditional PACs are subject to contribution limits on both the receiving and giving side; Super PACs are not subject to limits on receipts but are absolutely prohibited from direct contribution to or coordination with campaigns. Using "PAC" as a generic term in legal research without specifying which type can produce significant analytical errors, particularly in post-2010 sources.
PAC vs. 527 Organization: A 527 organization (named for the relevant section of the Internal Revenue Code) is a tax-exempt political organization, but not all 527s are PACs. Some 527s operate outside FEC jurisdiction by focusing on voter registration or issue advocacy rather than express electoral advocacy. The overlap and distinction between these categories was a major source of regulatory litigation in the 2000s.
Recognized Forms
/SUBTYPES
— Connected PAC (Separate Segregated Fund / SSF): Sponsored by a corporation, union, or trade association. Solicitation limited to the sponsoring organization's members or employees.
— Non-Connected PAC: No sponsoring organization. May solicit the general public. Subject to same hard-money contribution limits as connected PACs.
— Leadership PAC: Established by an elected official or candidate to support other candidates. Subject to standard contribution limits; may not fund the establishing official's own campaign expenses.
— Super PAC (Independent Expenditure-Only Committee): Unlimited receipts; no direct contributions or coordination with campaigns permitted.
— Hybrid PAC (Carey Committee): May maintain two separate accounts — one operating as a traditional PAC for direct contributions, one operating as a Super PAC for independent expenditures.
Why It Matters in Research
The legal meaning of "PAC" has changed significantly since the term entered use in the 1940s, and the regulatory framework governing PACs has been substantially reshaped by statute, FEC rulemaking, and judicial decision at multiple points: the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, its 1974 amendments, Buckley v. Valeo (1976), the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002, and the D.C. Circuit and Supreme Court decisions of 2010 (SpeechNow.org v. FEC and Citizens United v. FEC).
Researchers working in pre-2010 sources will find no mention of Super PACs. The category did not exist. References to "PACs" in sources from the 1970s through 2009 refer exclusively to what is now called the traditional or connected PAC model. Projecting post-2010 Super PAC law backward onto earlier materials is a common and serious error.
FEC advisory opinions and rulemaking records are the primary primary-law sources for understanding how PAC categories are defined and enforced at the federal level. State law adds another layer: many states have their own PAC definitions, registration requirements, and contribution limits that differ materially from federal rules. A PAC operating in multiple states may be subject to several overlapping regulatory regimes simultaneously.
The term "PAC" is also used loosely in political journalism to describe any organized money vehicle, including 527s, 501(c)(4) social welfare organizations, and others that are not PACs under FEC definitions. Researchers should verify the legal form of any entity described as a "PAC" in non-legal sources.
Historical Dictionary Support
Burrill's Law Dictionary contains no entry for PAC as Political Action Committee. This is expected: Burrill's dates to the nineteenth century, and the PAC as a legal institution did not emerge until the mid-twentieth century. The absence is informative — it confirms that this is a modern statutory and regulatory term with no common-law heritage.
No classical legal dictionary covers this term. Researchers relying on historical dictionaries alone will find no guidance on PAC law. The operative sources are modern: the Federal Election Campaign Act as amended, FEC regulations at 11 C.F.R., and the line of Supreme Court decisions interpreting the First Amendment limits on campaign finance regulation.
Jurisdictional Note
Federal PAC law governs organizations participating in federal elections and is administered by the Federal Election Commission. State campaign finance laws govern state and local elections and vary widely — some states impose no contribution limits at all, while others are more restrictive than federal law. Multi-jurisdictional research requires consulting each relevant state's campaign finance statutes and enforcement agency guidance separately.
Encyclopedia Cross-Reference
See Law Mind Encyclopedia — Campaign Finance; Political Organizations; Federal Election Law