The National Apartment Association Political Action Committee (NAAPAC) adheres to federal election law when soliciting contributions to support the multifamily industry's goals in Congress.
What is a Political Action Committee (PAC)? A political action committee is a fund organized to raise and contribute money to help support and elect candidates for public office. PACs can represent businesses, labor, member/trade groups or ideological interests. PACs can be organized on the local, state or federal level, and each jurisdiction has its own unique set of rules and regulations.
How is a traditional PAC like NAAPAC different from a Super PAC? A traditional PAC, such as NAAPAC, is permitted to contribute directly to federal candidates and is subject to strict contribution limits and solicitation rules. NAAPAC can only accept donations from individuals within its membership who belong to the restricted class (see below) and cannot accept contributions from corporations or unions. In contrast, a Super PAC can raise and spend unlimited amounts from individuals, corporations, and unions but cannot contribute directly to candidates or coordinate with their campaigns. Super PACs are also not bound by the same solicitation restrictions as traditional PACs.
How much can an individual contribute? The maximum contribution an individual can make is $5,000 per calendar year.
Is a contribution tax deductible? No. NAAPAC contributions are not tax deductible as charitable contributions for federal income tax purposes.
Are contributions mandatory? All contributions to NAAPAC are voluntary. You may refuse to contribute without reprisal.
How are contributions accepted? NAAPAC accepts cash, personal checks, and personal credit cards. For cash contributions, we can accept up to $100. However, for any contribution exceeding $50, we will request the contributor’s name, mailing address, occupation, and employer's name.
Can NAAPAC accept corporate contributions? No, federal PACs are prohibited from soliciting or accepting contributions from corporations.
Does NAAPAC support state or local candidates or issues? No, NAAPAC exclusively contributes to candidates in federal elections.
How does NAAPAC support NAA’s federal advocacy efforts? NAAPAC funds are utilized to contribute to the election campaigns of Members of Congress and other federal candidates who are allies of the industry or have the potential to be. This support helps cultivate relationships between NAA’s federal affairs team, NAA affiliates, the industry as a whole, and federal elected officials, paving the way for success on NAA’s federal priorities.
What is the Federal Election Commission (FEC)? The FEC is an independent regulatory agency responsible for enforcing campaign finance law in federal elections. They establish the rules regarding whom political action committees can accept contributions from and how they can solicit those contributions.
Who can contribute to NAAPAC? NAAPAC is only permitted to solicit contributions from a select group of individuals classified as the “restricted class” by the FEC.
What is NAAPAC’s Restricted Class? Federal PACs like NAAPAC can only solicit contributions from a restricted class, which includes the members and executives of NAA and its affiliates. If a member of an affiliate is a corporation, then only salaried (not hourly) executive and administrative personnel are within the restricted class. Spouses of NAA members may also contribute to NAAPAC, if they so choose. Additionally, corporate members of NAA or an affiliate must grant "Prior Approval" to NAAPAC before soliciting their executive and administrative personnel. For partnerships, LLCs, or LPs, only non-corporate partners may be solicited.
Can a corporate employee support NAAPAC? Yes, if the corporation gives NAAPAC permission to solicit their restricted class, known as "prior approval."
What is Prior Approval? The FEC requires “prior approval” from corporations that are members of our affiliates before NAAPAC may solicit the employees of that corporate member.
- A representative of the corporation must fill out a prior approval form giving NAAPAC permission to contact the restricted class of the company. NAA has paper prior approval forms and an online portal where they can provide the approval.
- This is to protect corporate employees and it does not mean those employees will be put on an email or call list and contacted for contributions frequently.
- Please reach out to a member of the NAAPAC team to receive this Prior Approval form at pac@naahq.org.
What about LLCs? NAAPAC accepts contributions from partnerships/LLCs/pass-through entities or personal contributions from the partners or principals. A contribution from an LLC or partnership can be no more than $5,000. In addition, a statement is required itemizing which partner(s) the contribution is attributed to.
For example, if XYZ Homes LLC sends a check for $3,000, they MUST provide a statement detailing how the $3,000 is allocated among partners, such as $1,000 each for partners Tom X, Mike Y, and John Z.