December 21, 2023 - Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA) on Wednesday released a report exposing the problem of scam PACs, fraudsters who pose as legitimate campaign organizations to get donations but then pocket the money. The 13-page report also details what policy changes are needed to stop Americans from getting cheated and outlines what steps people can take to protect themselves in the meantime.

Click HERE to read the report, Political Parasites: How Scam PACs Cheat Us.

“As the 2024 campaign season heats up, Congress still hasn’t done enough to protect people from these political scams,” said Congresswoman Porter, a longtime consumer protection attorney. “My new report helps everyone, regardless of their party, better understand what scam PACs are, what Congress must do to stop them, and how Americans can protect their dollars from them. As I have since my first term in Congress, I’m continuing to work across the aisle on legislation that would protect Americans and safeguard our democracy.”

Scam PACs cheat people out of millions of dollars each year. Porter’s report shows that not only do these fraudsters disproportionately target and harm seniors and veterans with their schemes, but they also weaken our democracy and political discourse, hurting all Americans.

In conjunction with her office’s new report, Porter is reintroducing two key bills to crack down on scam PACs that are modeled after the Federal Election Commission’s unanimously endorsed, bipartisan recommendations for Congress:

• Stop Scam PACs Act: This bipartisan bill, co-led by Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX), would close loopholes in current law so the Federal Election Commission can go after cheaters posing as legitimate causes and candidates.
• SCAM PAC Act: Porter’s Stopping Corrupt Actors from Making Political Action Committees (SCAM PAC) Act would stop PACs that spend most of their money on illegitimate expenses from using the funds to line the pockets of PAC operators and their family members. This new standard would prevent fraud and self-dealing.

Porter’s report, Political Parasites: How Scam PACs Cheat Us, is available HERE.

A member of the House Oversight Committee, Porter has made it a priority to work on strengthening our democratic system and hold cheaters accountable. She has introduced legislation to ban high-level government officials from owning stocks, eliminate foreign funding from state and local elections, and increase transparency of mail-in ballots. She previously released a report documenting how predatory lenders repeatedly exploit vulnerable servicemembers, veterans, and military families with bad home loans. She has also held a town hall specifically focused on educating Americans to protect themselves from fraud.
Source: Congressman Katie Porter