Corporate Accountability

The California Assembly approved legislation Thursday to weaken a truth in advertising law that currently protects consumers who care about the origin of the products they buy.

Most Americans assume when they see a Made in USA label that the product is made domestically. But the meaning of Made in USA is currently up for debate in our state.

CFC opposes AB 890 (Jones), which is attempting to overturn a 2011 ruling of the California Supreme Court upholding an important truth in advertising law.

CFC opposes SB 661 (Hill), which would undercut businesses that are committed to American manufacturing and mislead consumers who care about truthful labels.

When workers have access to personal information, a consumer should have the right to know if the worker is a city employee, a known company employee, a temporary or contracted employee, or an independent contractor.

CFC supports SB 448, which is aimed at protecting California consumers who have, for too long, been at the mercy of a few major oil companies that control nearly all of the transportation fuel market.

Funded by Mercury Insurance's billionaire Chairman George Joseph, Prop 33 is nearly an identical replay of Mercury's unsuccessful 2010 initiative aimed at raising auto insurance costs on millions of drivers.

As the clock at the state Capitol winds down to adjournment at midnight on Friday August 31, the Consumer Federation of California is on alert for last minute amendments that might be snuck into a bill that would stop Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones from adopting vital consumer protections for motorists.

The Consumer Federation of California is calling on state lawmakers to crack down on for-profit, private colleges that hoodwink students into programs that promise career advancement, yet deliver worthless diplomas and pile on debt that can lead to financial ruin.

The Corporate Executive Retirement Sunshine Act, SB 1208 (Leno), was approved by the Senate on May 30. Sponsored by the Consumer Federation of California, this bill requires publicly traded corporations to report the amount of money their top five highest paid retired executives receive in retirement compensation.

...the bill is stalled in the Senate Judiciary Committee due to opposition from the Consumer Federation of California, which says it would create "a vague standard that invites mislabeling," and Consumer Attorneys of California, which contends that California is best served by having its own, higher standard.

AB 1537 provides greater legislative oversight of the California Code of Regulations; however, in reality the bill accomplishes very little other than to establish a problematic, broad restriction on new regulations.

The measure has the same goal as Proposition 17, which voters rejected in 2010. It would impose insurance surcharges on California drivers simply because they had been car-free for a time.

AB 318 (Skinner) would create a database of publicly traded corporations and the amount they claim in tax expenditures on the existing Reporting Transparency in Government website.

But like a zombie that is killed, only to walk the earth again, Mercury Insurance Chairman George Joseph just donated $8.2 million to bring Prop 17 back from the grave for the 2012 ballot.

SB 881 (Corbett) requires the Office and Planning and Research to compile information relevant to the siting and permitting of renewable energy projects and to post that information on the internet.

AB 999 (Yamada) modifies the long-term care insurance premium rate development process to protect consumers from excessive premium rate volatility and allows consumers to review policy language prior to the policy being purchased, thus allowing the consumer to make a more informed decision.

In issuing this emergency regulation, I declared my intention to implement federal health care reform here in California despite the efforts of the Republican majority in the House of Representatives to repeal or defund health care reform.

SB 657 requires major retail sellers and manufacturers to describe on company websites their voluntary efforts to eliminate slavery and trafficking from their own direct suppliers.

A white paper on the NUMMI plant closing was recently prepared by Professor Harley Shaiken from the University of California, Berkeley entitled "Commitment Is a Two-Way Street: Toyota, California, and NUMMI".

Consumers deserve to know the terms and conditions of any product advertisement, and should have the information they need to terminate an automatically renewing subscription. SB 340 (Lee) would help restrict the deceptive marketing of product subscriptions.

AB 48 has been presented as a student protection bill, when in fact it is designed to protect the profits of private post-secondary for-profit proprietary schools against their students.

AB 48 is being presented as a student protection bill, when in fact it is designed to protect the profits of private post-secondary for-profit proprietary schools against their students.

In the hectic final month of the 2009 regular session, hundreds of bills will move swiftly through both chambers of the legislature. A number of these bills – good and bad – are of utmost importance to California’s consumers.

Check out our brief legislative report on key consumer rights bills.

...this proposed initiative repeals the three new corporate loopholes which were the secretly included in the failed budget deals of September 2008 and February 2009. None have yet taken effect, so the initiative would prevent over $2 billion yearly in future revenue losses.

Fairness dictates that everyone shares in the pain. And that includes some of the world’s wealthiest corporations. Before considering additional cuts to programs Californians care so deeply about, we ask that you shut down these corporate tax giveaways.

400,000 Californians attend over 1500 private post secondary vocational educational institutions. Despite recurring instances of fraud committed upon students, the state currently provides no oversight of these for-profit schools.

Prop 1A does affect state budgets beginning in July 2010, if lawmakers do nothing else in the next year to address longstanding structural funding problems. At its core, Proposition 1A is a political tradeoff. We believe it is a bad one.

The extraordinary greed of AIG and the other financial giants that brought our economy to the brink underscore the necessity of protecting our rights as Americans to hold big business accountable. The last thing we should contemplate is erecting barriers that stop consumers from banding together in class-action suits against corporate fraud and abuse.

This year, without the benefit of public hearings and public scrutiny, a massive big business tax cut was jammed through as part of a budget deal. This is not tax fairness. It is redistribution of income away from workers and consumers and into the pockets of big corporations.

Lawmakers face painful choices in closing the budget gap. In light of the severe cuts that will disproportionately affect the lives of the least fortunate among us, we believe an oil severance fee is a painless and overdue measure of tax fairness.

Every year the Consumer Federation of California monitors, supports, and opposes dozens of bills related to consumer rights. Every year many of these bills are “killed” in the legislature while many others reach the Governor’s desk to either be signed into law or vetoed.

Exxon Mobil, Shell, Chevron and Occidental Petroleum combined reported record profits of $36 billion for the third quarter of 2008. That’s $400 million in profits every day, seven days a week. Those four oil giants extract over 70% of the oil pumped from California’s ground. And they pay no state fees for that privilege.

Despite spending $22 million to buy an election, they can’t even rely on the support of the people who appear in their ads! The child actor who appears with a pinwheel in front of wind turbines in Prop 10 TV and print ads is asking voters to reject Prop 10.

CFC’s Policy Board has taken a position on six of the propositions on the November ballot. Of the 11 Propositions, CFC supports four, opposes two, and has taken a "no position" on five.

A fossil fuel corporation owned by Texas oil tycoon T. Boone Pickens spent three million dollars to put Proposition 10 on the ballot. That corporation will reap a bonanza if Prop 10 passes. California taxpayers will be stuck subsidizing big trucking companies at a cost of $335 million per year.

Prop 10 is the worst kind of corporate raid on the public coffers. We simply cannot afford to cut our schools, our health services and our public safety programs further to enrich a Texas billionaire. Vote No on Prop 10.

California already has several effective programs to reduce greenhouse gases and promote clean alternative energy. Unlike Prop 10, most of these programs are paid by user fees, not by tapping the state’s General Fund. Prop 10 – it’s about greed, not green.

In reviewing SB 1224, we are concerned that it is ambiguous as to whether the bill limits the right of policy holders who wish to finance their premiums and may wish to engage in a life settlement at some later date.

Two common sense consumer protection laws are on Governor Schwarzenegger's desk. One would give us the right to cash in a gift card when the balance drops below ten dollars. The other would require retailers to sell us a product at the after-rebate price that it advertises.

California consumers are under assault every day from big business interests with an endless amount of money, lobbyists and political connections. Read more about CFC's 2007 legislative priorities.

In Louisiana, Alaska, and Texas oil companies pay a state oil drilling fee but in California they get a free ride at the taxpayers expense. Proposition 87 would establish a wellhead tax on oil that would fund research and production incentives for alternative energy, alternative energy vehicles, energy efficient technologies, and for education and training.

Last week Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi scored a decisive victory for California consumers, winning the 18 yearlong battle to fully implement Proposition 103. Garamendi has forced the insurance industry to base their rates on how you drive, not where you live.

Find out which California November 2006 ballot measures CFC has chosen to endorse, and which to oppose!

Every year the Consumer Federation of California (CFC) takes positions on a host of consumer rights related legislation. Find out which bills CFC has chosen to support, and which bills we've chosen to oppose this year.

The Consumer Federation of California is collaborating with the California Department of Insurance to publicize the Low Cost Auto Insurance Program (LCA), which is designed to provide low-income, good drivers with an affordable insurance option.

Three days after pledging to hold college fee increase to no more than ten percent a year, Governor Schwarzenegger unveiled a whopping forty four percent fee increase for community college students.

On his second day in office, Governor Schwarzenegger proposed a whopping $15 billion bond. The estimated tax cost for our children and grandchildren: $22 billion. Stop the massive tax hike!

"Arnold Schwarzenegger betrayed his campaign promise to serve the people. His vetoes on consumer legislation show that he an obedient servant for the business interests that bankroll him,"

Apple goes to trial over allegations by federal and state authorities that it conspired with publishers to raise the price of e-books.

A federal appeals court has reinstated a false-advertising lawsuit brought against Kohls Corporation in California.

California consumers soon could be paying more for the products they buy online if a proposed federal law is approved.

Apple has used an elaborate web of offshore subsidiaries to avoid paying billions of dollars in U.S. taxes on $44 billion in foreign income over the past four years, a Senate investigation has found.

The bill would increase the minimum wage 25 cents next year, another 50 cents in 2015 and then to $9.25 in 2016. Thereafter, it would be adjusted annually to the rate of inflation.

Just months after California voters passed Proposition 30 to stave off education cuts, a push is under way to ensure that the next stream of higher education funding flows out of the ground.

A recent change in the way Google presents its privacy policy violates the California Online Privacy Protection Act and is fundamentally deceptive, Consumer Watchdog told AG Kamala Harris.

After scrimping and borrowing to pay for college, graduates are finally preparing to celebrate. But at many public universities, you don't just pay to get in. You pay to get out.

California AG Kamala Harris has accused JPMorgan Chase & Co. of using fraudulent and unlawful debt-collection practices against some 100,000 credit card holders in the state.

Mercury has sued to block a $16.5-million rate cut, asked court to delay implementation.

We do not support changing the current standard. If something is 90 percent made in the U.S., it should say 90 percent made in the U.S., said Richard Holober, CFC executive director.

Change of ownership, key to reassessment, is cut-and-dried for homeowners but not businesses. It means a loss of tens of millions of dollars a year in tax revenue.

An Assembly panel passed three bills that propose to halt fracking for up to five years while more studies on environmental safety are conducted.

Only about a sixth of the $2 billion available to help troubled homeowners in the state has been tapped. But officials say the money will begin to flow soon.

Google, which has been testing driverless cars for years in the Bay Area, and automakers say: Don't stifle us with too many regulations. Meanwhile, safety advocates plead for caution.

The old adage "pack your patience" may be more true than ever this summer at Sacramento International Airport and other airports nationally - the result of federal budgets cutbacks that went into effect this week.

The beleaguered U.S. Postal Service backed down from its cost-saving plan to eliminate Saturday mail delivery, acknowledging that Congress barred a move that supporters said was essential to addressing the agency's dire financial condition.

A judge has thrown out a regulation that allows the insurance commissioner to decide what is an unfair business practice, which can carry penalties for companies and their agents.

The streamlined mortgage modification program doesn't require troubled borrowers to prove a hardship, but it won't include principal reductions.

California's community colleges - the nation's largest public higher education system - have lost so many teachers and classes that students are being driven away.

Many students will be looking for deals as they make their spring break travel plans...scammers are aware of this and advertising custom-tailored schemes to defraud this vulnerable group.

Prices for generic prescription drugs can often go on a roller coaster. The FDA should take action to help consumers find out the true cost of such medicine.

The legislation calls for development of 50 online classes as potential substitutes for the hard-to-get core courses required for graduation at UC, Cal State and community colleges.

The FTC set out clear rules for short-form ads on social media like Twitter and Facebook; ads must make space for full disclosure.

The CA insurance commissioner criticizes Blue Shield for an unjust rate hike which he is currently powerless to stop. There is a chance to change that on the 2014 ballot, which would force insurance companies to justify their rates before hikes can take effect.

Mercury, which had originally sought a 7.3% increase, responds by filing a lawsuit seeking to block Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones' ruling.

Harris asks California lawmakers to OK funding for a database to identify doctors who recklessly prescribe addictive drugs.

Among new airline fees are charges to speed through airport screening gates and board early, watch streaming movies, and have checked bags delivered.

In the coming months California will confront an unusual confluence of challenges that could determine the price and availability of water for decades to come.

Rubio also supported, and may have encouraged, the governor's firing of two state energy regulators in 2011 after oil lobby complaints about their tightening of oversight.

Identity theft tops list for 13th consecutive year in report of national consumer complaints.

California's fire chief called his department's off-books fund "an invaluable tool" and said he "will not apologize for using it to improve our cost recovery efforts."

The abrupt resignation of Sen. Michael Rubio to accept a government affairs job with Chevron sparked complaints by watchdogs about the revolving door between the public and private sector.

Nearly 72,000 Californians have had their mortgages reduced or forgiven under terms of a multi-state mortgage settlement with six major banks, according to a report about banks' compliance.

In the face of overwhelming public outrage and consumer complaints, Blue Cross is suspending their controversial planned forced mail-order pharmacy program for HIV/AIDS patients.

The state legislative analyst recommended that auditors probe whether regulators are properly overseeing accounts for utility projects totaling trillions of dollars.

California electricity consumers could get refunds totaling $1.6 billion because of excessive rates charged during the initial phase of the energy crisis, the Public Utilities Commission said today.

A lot can change in a year, and a new report released this week has found the number of foreclosures in California has dropped dramatically.

Some lawmakers say proposed rules don't go far enough to require disclosure by oil companies using the extraction method.

Gov. Brown and CA university officials say it's inevitable. Targeting a tech-savvy generation, they are paving the way for more students to pass courses and obtain degrees without ever going to class.

Per the FTC, these alleged errors are in regard to information used to generate credit scores, including the number of collections accounts, the number of inquiries on a credit file, the number late or missed payments, among others.

The American Council on Education's decision is viewed as as a reputation and financial boost for the emerging industry of massive open online courses.

The financially struggling U.S. Postal Service said it will stop delivering mail on Saturdays but continue to disburse packages six days a week, an end-run around an unaccommodating Congress.

The break motorists received at gas pumps over the recent holidays is over. After generally stable at-the-pump costs, the price of gasoline in the Sacramento area spiked 21 cents over the past week to an average of $3.74 a gallon.

As a lawsuit was filed to stop unregulated fracking in California, the president of the Western States Petroleum Association claimed that fracking causes no environmental harm in the state.

Get ready to pay a few more bucks for gas. Prices are on an upward march and could hit $3.80 to $3.95 a gallon by Valentine's Day as refineries convert to the more expensive summer blend of fuel while coping with sporadic outages.

California does not require energy firms to disclose where they use the controversial procedure or what chemicals they inject into the ground. Regulators released draft rules for fracking last month that would mandate such disclosure but allow oil companies to keep secret the names of certain chemicals they claim to be proprietary.

The price of sending mail with a first-class stamp goes up by one cent to 46 cents - a hike the USPS announced last October. Postcard postage will also rise one cent to 33 cents.

Single-use plastic bags would be banned in California under legislation introduced this week.

Car dealers are fighting to get exempted from legislation that would prohibit them from selling used cars or renting or lending new models before recall repairs are made.

From food to mail services, taxes, and baseball tickets, here's what you'll be shelling out more cash for this year.

It seems almost unimaginable that someone would try to take advantage of the Newtown school tragedy to defraud consumers, but evidently scam artists are willing to stoop to a new low.

The $8 per hour minimum wage in California has been frozen for five years and a battle is likely in the 2013 legislative session over whether it should be increased and indexed to inflation.

U.S. regulators are near a settlement with Google in a dispute over Google's efforts to stop the sale of products it says infringe essential patents.

Accusing Wells Fargo of reneging on a sweeping mortgage-modification deal, a lawyer is trying to reopen a case involving risky "pick-a-pay" loans written during the housing bubble.

After making a big deal of publicly supporting the Affordable Care Act, Walmart is joining the ranks of companies seeking to avoid providing employees with required health insurance.

Who would want two companies, Tesoro and Chevron, to control more than half of California's gasoline market? Only people, like oil company executives, who think paying five dollars a gallon should be the new normal.

California's largest for-profit health insurer proposes an average rate hike of 18%, but some Anthem customers may see increase of as much as 25% in February.

Too few companies own too many refineries and the obstacles to bringing in out-of-state supplies in an emergency are too great.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal introduced the Gift Card Consumer Protection Act in an effort to strengthen current federal regulations of gift card expiration dates and non-use fees.

In the past couple of years, the company has faced a number of regulatory and legal challenges. Career Education revealed it had inflated job placement rates for its graduates, attracting scrutiny from accreditors.

The days of facing your opponent in a court of law to settle disputes are rapidly fading, especially if you are a consumer. For consumers, a barely noticeable clause may be trading your right to a day in court for forced arbitration when disputing a matter with a company, because you were given no choice when you signed or were given the contract for their services, says Carey Been, an Los Angeles consumer protection attorney.

Operating on the theory that forewarned is forearmed, McAfee is exposing what it calls it Top 12 Scams of Christmas that criminals plan to use to rip off consumers as they shop online this holiday season.

Microsoft faces a lawsuit filed by a California lawyer over claims about the company’s new Surface tablet. Court papers say the tablet was advertised as having 32 GB of storage space, but it had only 16 GB left after the operating system and all the apps for Microsoft Office were installed. The papers request that the suit be given class-action status.

The defeat of Prop 33 sends a loud message that Californians are not easily hoodwinked into supporting corporate self-enrichment schemes, no matter how much is spent to mislead voters.

The campaign in favor of Prop 33 has been so consistently misleading, it's almost pointless to keep criticizing the measure's supporters for warping the facts. Nevertheless, an advertisement Monday in favor of the measure makes a point that bears rebutting before voters head to the polls.

Forty newspaper editorial boards ... decry Prop 33 as an abuse of the ballot by a billionaire to benefit his company at the expense of millions of consumers. They warn that Prop 33's premium rate increases would make insurance less affordable, resulting in more uninsured motorists on our roads.

In a stunning admission, billionaire George Joseph stated that his company, Mercury Insurance, does not offer its own customers the "persistence discount" that Proposition 33 promises all Californians would receive by "shopping their discount" around if the initiative is approved.

Leading college student newspaper editorials urge a NO vote on Proposition 33, a measure that threatens graduates with massive auto insurance rate surcharges.

Bicycling is booming, and our communities are safer, healthier, and more livable places because of it. We would like to be able to tell people that bicycling will save you money on car insurance, but if Prop 33 passes, we won’t be able to say that.

The Yes on Proposition 33 campaign reported yesterday another contribution of $500,000 from George Joseph, billionaire owner of Mercury Insurance. This brings Mr. Joseph’s total contributions to the Yes on Proposition 33 campaign to $16.9 million.

Seven independent consumer organizations oppose Proposition 33, which legalizes arbitrary insurance surcharges on millions of motorists. Proposition 33 allows premium rate hikes on anyone who suspends coverage for 90 days within five years and on newly insured customers, including good drivers. Mercury Insurance's billionaire owner George Joseph contributed $16.4 million to Prop 33. He recently acknowledged that his goal is to give Mercury a license to charge customers more.

This is the second quest to gouge those who are already living on the financial edge and can least afford it, even if they are excellent drivers. People shouldn't be harmed with costly car insurance rate hikes when they're trying to get back on their feet, which is why Prop 33 is opposed by consumer, senior, civil rights, faith-based and labor groups and major progressive and conservative newspapers.

Prop 33 would return us to an era when discrimination in insurance was commonplace. If billionaire George Joseph gets his way, millions would pay higher auto insurance premiums. Mr. Joseph owns Mercury Insurance. He has donated $16.4 million to Prop 33.

Prop. 33 is a deceptive initiative designed to bring us back to the day when insurance companies could price certain types of people out of the insurance market completely. That's why consumer groups, civil rights groups, as well every major newspaper editorial board in the state oppose it.

Some will tell you with Prop. 33 you can take your discount with you. That is not true. Discounts are decided by each individual company. You can't force them to give you a discount they aren't offering.

KTVU FOX TV 2, San Francisco, CA: Richard Holober discusses the false promise of Prop 33, which "would allow for a fourth factor that is not connected to risk" to raise rates.

I am a senior citizen and live on a fixed income. I'm voting No on Prop 33 because it will raise insurance rates on law abiding Californians like me, who have a health problem that keeps them off the road for a period of time.

35 daily newspaper editorial boards urge readers to vote NO on Proposition 33, an automobile insurance rate hike scheme funded by George Joseph, billionaire owner of Mercury Insurance.

Consumer and public interest groups are being outspent 50 to 1 by an insurance billionaire who has thrown $16 million into Prop 33 in order to cherry pick customers and raise rates on good drivers in California...

But his newest proposal is no different from his past attempts: Prop 33 would cause costly rate hikes for low-income communities of color, ushering us back into an unjust era of insurance redlining.

Props 32 and 33 will hurt working people, but the two reclusive billionaires have refused to step out of the shadows and defend their measures, preferring to hide behind advertising campaigns fronted by PR firms.

The insurance billionaire who has spent $16.5 million on Prop 33 finally admitted in an LA Times column that he is financing the initiative to raise insurance rates on newly insured customers.

About 20 percent of insureds would presumably see their rates go up because they had a lapse in insurance that did not fit into any of these categories.

George Joseph, founder of Mercury General Group, is virtually the sole bankroller of Prop. 33, which he sees as a tool for poaching customers from competitors.

Three more newspapers, the Stockton Record, La Opinion, and the Chico News & Review, have joined the flood of papers urging voters to reject Prop 33, sponsored by one billionaire to raise car insurance rates on good drivers.

The loyalty discount Prop 33 claims to protect is not given as an incentive to obey the law; it is a marketing tool insurers give because it is cheaper to keep a customer than get a new customer.

The auto insurance industry has been trying to ram this proposal through for years, without success. Bad policy is bad policy, no matter how you dress it up. We recommend a no vote on Prop 33.

And since he is privately bankrolling the Proposition 33 campaign, you also will not see funded by Mercury Insurance in the disclaimers, because he is using his own treasure chest and does not have to publicly reveal his identity.

This is an abuse of the system of initiatives, designed to put the brakes on corporate interests. Proposition 33 is a bad idea that should be defeated in this election as it was two years ago.

The ad tells only part of the story, and features a testimonial from a motorist without disclosing she works for the Prop 33 campaign team...The FPPC decided not to investigate.

If the goal is to get all drivers to carry automobile insurance, then raising rates on those who haven't carried it in the past seems counterproductive. That's why voters should reject Prop 33.

What Joseph is trying to do is rewrite a part of Prop 103. The law, passed nearly 25 years ago, turned auto insurance in the Golden State into a highly regulated industry, akin to electric utilities.

Mercury is now raising rates by $63 million, approx 4 percent hike for 990,000 Mercury policyholders... Advocates say it is proof that Prop 33 is a deception and its promised discounts are phony.

Prop 33 allows insurance companies to raise rates on motorists with perfect driving records. If voters buy this lemon, millions of law-abiding Californians will see a new surcharge on their auto insurance premium bills. Proposition 33 carves a loophole in state insurance law, banning regulatory review of this new rate hike.

Nearly every newspaper editorial board in California has rejected Prop 33 as an unfair measure that will penalize good drivers, including liberal, middle-of-the-road and conservative papers across the state ranging from the San Diego Union-Tribune to the San Francisco Chronicle.

If the goal is to get all drivers to carry automobile insurance, then raising rates on those who have not carried it in the past - for whatever reason - seems counterproductive. That is why voters should reject Proposition 33.

George Joseph, the billionaire chairman of Mercury Insurance Co. and backer of the Prop 33 campaign gave another $8 million to the initiative this weekend, bringing his total spending on the measure to $16,422,126. Prop 33 will allow insurance companies to raise car insurance rates on good drivers who have a break in their coverage for almost any reason, even if they weren't driving.

The initiative is necessary to get around Prop 103, the 1988 law that forces insurers to set rates using only three main factors: driving experience; miles traveled per year; and safety record. Coverage history is specifically excluded.

...This is terribly unfair. People go without car insurance for many different reasons that have nothing to do with whether they are a risk or not. They may have just decided to use public transit for a period of time or have not been working.