Consumer Protection

Odd Bedfellows Oppose the Tenaska Tax

By | Brian Imus
State Director

Illinois PIRG joined with the Illinois Chamber of Commerce to oppose Senate Bill 678 – legislation that would force Illinois consumers to pay for a proposed coal plant the Tenaska Corporation wants to build

Report | Illinois PIRG Education Fund | Consumer Protection

Trouble in Toyland

The 2011 Trouble in Toyland report is our 26th annual survey of toy safety. In this report, we provide safety guidelines for consumers when purchasing toys for young children and provide examples of toys currently on store shelves that may pose potential safety hazards.

Big Banks, Bigger Fees

Since Congress largely deregulated consumer deposit (checking and savings) accounts beginning in the early 1980s, the PIRGs have tracked bank deposit account fee changes and documented the banks’ long-term strategy to raise fees, invent new fees and make it harder to avoid fees. 

KIDS’ SCHOOL LUNCHES NOW SAFER

For years, America’s schoolchildren have been eating beef, chicken and other foods that would have been rejected as substandard even by fast food chains. Thanks in part to our advocacy, the U.S.D.A. has stopped buying such low-quality meat for school lunches.

Beat High Bank Fees

Banks rely on consumer indifference when they raise fees. They count on consumers not shopping around. PIRG’s Big Banks, Bigger Fees reports routinely find that small banks and credit unions are not following the big banks’ lead; they still offer many free or low cost accounts.

TIPS FOR TOY SAFETY

Thousands of toys are on the market, each promising to educate or entertain our children. Unfortunately, not every toy is safe. Toy buyers can help protect children from injury by being careful, vigilant shoppers.

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