The Nation - News from Jan. 20, 1986

The ranks of the nation’s political action committees thinned again in the last half of 1985, the Federal Election Commission said. The FEC counted 3,992 PACs on its books as of Dec. 31, down from an even 4,000 last July. It was the second straight drop in the number of PACs, which peaked at 4,009 at the end of 1984, after a decade of rapid growth. The slight retrenchment does not mean that PACs are spending any less these days. In fact, they set a record in the last congressional elections by providing House and Senate candidates $105 million, or 26.5% of all the money raised. PAC contributions have tripled since the 1978 elections.