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Blog Post | Consumer Protection

How I’m supercharging my savings with socially responsible investing (SRI) | Mike Litt

Getting my finances in order has been a work in progress over several years, starting with tackling credit card debt, paying off my car loan and then building an emergency fund. 

After clearing those hurdles, I set more defined financial goals and plans in motion this year, including automatic deposits into new investment accounts.

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Blog Post | Consumer Tips

Post office slowdown: How to cope with new delays in our mail delivery that start Oct. 1 | Teresa Murray

This means everything from bills to birthday cards will arrive later in our mailboxes. And credit card and loan payments, RSVPs and government forms we send will take longer too. 

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Report | Georgia PIRG Education Fund

Trash in America

The United States produces too much waste. Natural resources are continually extracted to produce goods that are used in the U.S. – often only briefly – before they are thrown into landfills, incinerators or the natural environment. This system of consumption and disposal results in the waste of precious resources and in pollution that threatens our health, environment and the global climate. Because the costs of this system fall on society at large – not on the producers and consumers who drive it – there are few direct incentives for change.

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Report | Georgia PIRG Education Fund

Trash in America

The United States produces too much waste. Natural resources are continually extracted to produce goods that are used in the U.S. – often only briefly – before they are thrown into landfills, incinerators or the natural environment. This system of consumption and disposal results in the waste of precious resources and in pollution that threatens our health, environment and the global climate. Because the costs of this system fall on society at large – not on the producers and consumers who drive it – there are few direct incentives for change.

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News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund | Antibiotics

PIRG Education Fund urges McDonald’s to meet commitment to reduce antibiotic use in beef supply

 PIRG Education Fund is calling on McDonald’s, the single largest purchaser of beef in the United States, to fulfill its commitment to reduce antibiotic use in its beef supply chain. 

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News Release | US PIRG | Public Health, Consumer Protection

Statement: Beech-Nut to stop selling some rice cereal over arsenic concerns

Beech-Nut will stop selling all single grain rice cereal after Alaska state officials discovered high arsenic levels during routing sampling, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) said in a statement released Tuesday.

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News Release | US PIRG | Public Health, Consumer Protection

Statement: CPSC vote to regulate infant sleep products will save lives

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission approved tough new standards Wednesday to regulate several infant sleep products for the first time.

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News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund

Report maps hundreds of toxic waste sites in the path of 2020's record-shattering Atlantic hurricane season

As “National Hurricane Preparedness Week” kicks off, many communities across the United States are still dealing with the devastating effects of last year’s record-shattering Atlantic hurricane season.

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News Release

Statement: Landmark FTC report calls for action on Right to Repair

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a report today on manufacturers' use of restrictive repair tactics that have kept consumers from repairing their own products.

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Report | Georgia PIRG Education Fund

Blueprint for America

Americans agree: Our nation’s infrastructure needs work. This report provides the blueprint that should form the basis of an infrastructure plan that will make America stronger today and lay the foundation for a brighter future. 

Executive Summary

Americans agree: Our nation’s infrastructure needs work.

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Report | U.S. PIRG Education Fund

Blueprint for America

Americans agree: Our nation’s infrastructure needs work. This report provides the blueprint that should form the basis of an infrastructure plan that will make America stronger today and lay the foundation for a brighter future. 

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Report | Georgia PIRG Education Fund

Trouble in Toyland

As holidays near, spotlight on nine toy hazards to avoid during gift-giving, sheltering-in-place

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Report | Georgia PIRG Education Fund

Break the waste cycle

Election Day is less than a week away, and come January, returning and newly elected legislators will face a mounting plastic waste crisis. Nearly 100,000 tons of plastic -- enough to fill roughly 1.5 football stadiums -- are thrown away every day in the United States. Break the Waste Cycle highlights producer responsibility, an emerging trend in which product-makers – not individuals or taxpayers – are responsible for the waste they create. 

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Report | Georgia PIRG Education Fund | COVID-19

Nursing home safety during COVID: PPE shortages

Seven months into COVID-19 pandemic, 226,000 nursing home residents nationwide at risk

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Blog Post | Consumer Tips, Consumer Protection

Waking up to the dangers of inclined infant sleepers | Teresa Murray

If you’re stunned that safety standards for inclined sleepers weren’t required before, get this: The new rules don’t take effect for a year. That’s one of the problems in the world of infant sleep.

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Blog Post | Consumer Tips

Robocalls are declining but not gone yet, so remember these tips to protect yourself | Teresa Murray

With the new federal law that takes effect June 30, we should start seeing a decline in illegal robocalls. But the scams certainly won't halt overnight. Here are some tips to live by.

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Blog Post

Man lost $124,000 in Amazon scam. Here are 10 ways to keep it from happening to you | Teresa Murray

In light of some of these newer cons, here is actionable information to help you avoid the aggravation, time and financial losses that come with sophisticated scams.

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Blog Post

Hell in high water | Mark Morgenstein

You never know what a hurricane will unearth

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Blog Post | Consumer Tips

Here's how to report price gouging on gasoline or anything else | Teresa Murray

While businesses are permitted to charge higher prices in response to market forces, they aren’t allowed in states with price gouging laws to increase prices excessively to take advantage of a emergency such as the pipeline shutdown, a hurricane or the pandemic. 

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News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund

Americans report more than 6,000 product safety-related injuries and illnesses in 2021 recalls

Blog Post

Why the CPSC can't do enough to protect consumers from dangerous products

Of the 23 deaths reported in connection with products recalled in 2021, 19 actually occurred in previous years. It can take months or years for the public to be warned about dangerous products because federal laws favor corporations, not consumers.

Report | U.S. PIRG Education Fund

Product Recalls: Often Too Little Too Late

2021 reminds us the system is broken. Federal laws favor corporations, not consumers, and it can take months or years for the public to be warned about dangerous products.

Blog Post

Portable generators kill about 70 people each year. Here's how to protect yourself and your loved ones

Blog Post

How to spot counterfeit N95, KN95 masks before you buy them

You may be setting aside those cloth or surgical masks and shopping for some N95 masks or KN95s that are supposed to be widely available. But . . . there unfortunately are lots of counterfeit products out there too.
 

  • COVID-19 CONSUMER TIPS
    Avoid online scams, protect your credit and more. We have assembled a set of consumer tips and guides, and will add more in the days to come.
    OUR TIPS
  • THE FIX IS IN
    Our survey shows that independent shops are struggling to access parts, service information and repair software which is necessary to fix phones — which manufacturers won’t let these independent shops have.
    OUR REPORT
  • FOOD RECALL FAILURE
    Will your supermarket warn you about hazardous food? Our survey grades 26 of the largest grocery stores in the country to determine the efficacy of their policies and practices notifying consumers about food recalls.
    OUR REPORT
  • CHAIN REACTION V
    The overuse of antibiotics contributes to antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which can cause life-threatening infections in people. Our report ranks restaurant chains on their policies relating to antibiotic use in their beef supply chains.
    SEE THE GRADES

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