Dozens of so-called scam political action committees were detected during the 2022 midterm elections, raising concerns about political swindling targeting vulnerable voter groups once again during the presidential cycle.

At least 86 of these fraudulent PACs were identified during the crucial midterm cycle, according to a recent report by the nonprofit campaign finance group OpenSecrets. Scam PACs are categorized as groups that advertise themselves as supporting a specific candidate or political organization, while little to no money actually goes toward those efforts.

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Of the 86 scam PACs identified by OpenSecrets, about 42% were categorized as Republican or conservative groups compared to 19% that described themselves as Democratic or liberal. Another 34% were unaffiliated with either party.

OpenSecrets identifies groups as scam PACs if they report spending over $100,000 in any given election cycle, and at least 50% of those expenditures are labeled as going toward “fundraising” or “consulting” costs, according to the group. However, those costs are typically listed in an ambiguous or vague manner, indicating that the money is not actually going toward boosting any political outcome.

Another way these groups are identified is when the PAC lists its address as the home address of one of its own vendors, often resulting in the money being used to fill their own pockets.

One such group that was detected during the 2022 midterm cycle was called the “American Alliance for Disabled Children PAC,” which raised over $2.2 million and allocated nearly 94% to go toward “fundraising” expenses, according to campaign finance data filed with the Federal Election Commission.

The group paid $816,000 to a vendor labeled “Public Support Services Inc.,” listing the purpose as going toward “fundraising, payment, and compliance” services. Public Support Services is a popular vendor among other scam PACs, according to OpenSecrets, especially those that claim to support groups advocating disability services or support for law enforcement.

The group has scant information about its organization online, dedicating less than six sentences on its website to describe its purpose and mission. Additionally, one-third of its website features stock images of business officials rather than content about the organization itself.

The report found several other fraudulent groups that listed a disproportionate amount of “fundraising” expenses compared to other costs, such as Back Blue Lives, the Constitutional Leadership PAC, and American Coalition for Crisis Relief, each spending more than 90% of its earnings on vague costs.

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In recent years, the FEC has sought to crack down on scam PACs, urging Congress to grant the agency broader authority to investigate and prosecute such groups. FEC commissioners submitted a request to lawmakers shortly after the midterm elections requesting Congress to address the problem, marking a rare moment of bipartisanship for the six-member board.

In a three-part recommendation sent to lawmakers in December, the agency pressed Congress to pass new guidelines explicitly defining scam PACs' tactics of fundraising and spending as fraudulent. However, there has not been much movement on the issue since the new Congress was sworn in eight months ago.