Public Affairs Council

The Public Affairs Council (PAC) is a professional association for people working in public administration and policy. Its mission is to advance the field of public affairs and provide resources to public affairs executives and managers to help them achieve their business and professional goals. Based in Washington, D.C., PAC currently counts over 600 corporations, associations and consulting firms as members.

The Public Affairs Council was launched in 1954 by President Dwight D. Eisenhower, when he convened a meeting of business executives to suggest the creation of a national organization to make business people from both parties active participants in the political process. First incorporated as the Effective Citizens Organization (ECO), the ECO relocated to Washington, DC from New York City in 1962 and changed its name to the Public Affairs Council in 1965.

In the 1950s, the concept of corporate public affairs was only beginning to come into vogue, and at the time meant mostly legislature watching and corporate community involvement. Today, the definition of "public affairs" is much broader, encompassing political involvement, lobbying (government relations), paces, corporate community involvement, issues management, grassroots advocacy, and public relations. This broadening of the field of public affairs and an increased understanding of the importance of political involvement has been demonstrated in the growth of formal corporate and association public affairs programs. In the 1950s, only a handful of companies had formal programs, today, thousands of companies and associations have them.

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