Passing points are championship or lineup points awarded for positions gained during a race, added to finish-position points, so a driver who starts deep and moves forward can outscore a driver who led from the pole.
Name the track before you quote a formula, because none of them match. Florence Speedway in Kentucky pays a heat winner 59 finishing points, second 55, third 51, “and so on with a 4 point difference per position,” then adds “1.76 points per spot advanced from starting position to finishing position,” and docks 0.01 per spot lost. Florence applies passing points to heats only — “Consis and Feature finish are NOT subject to passing points” — and the totals set the feature lineup. Riverhead Raceway draws for heat positions, then sets its feature lineup off “the sum of Finishing Points and Passing Points,” on a scale where a heat win is 13 points and tenth is 3. Take the tail at Florence and you lose passing points.
Passing points are why your points total does not match your finishes, and why at a track that uses them, racing hard from the back is worth more than protecting a good starting spot.