[jfengel]

That low number is not a coincidence. A PAC is limited to $5,000 per candidate per year. (I'm not sure how the number there is over $5,000; it may include individual donor money as well.)

The main influence of a PAC is not its money but its ability to be in the room. Registered lobbyists have much greater access. That's not about paying for it; it's about the fact that they are legally allowed to do so (you have to register if you meet with legislators frequently) and the fact that the legislators will agree to meet with them (they can take only so many meetings per day and tend to the people who talk to other powerful people).

The FEC rules prevent money from being used as a bribe. It's much too low for that. The organizations do donate, because they can, but it's the access that really gives them more influence than you have.