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You’re not crazy: your appliances were built to fail you | Anne Marie Green

Why appliances aren’t built to last, and how the E.U. is changing that. 

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Blog Post | Consumer Tips

7 types of ingredients to avoid in your personal care routineDanielle MelgarGina Werdel

A scorecard released by U.S. PIRG Education Fund found that many popular cosmetic brands score poorly on ingredient safety and disclosure. While companies and governments need to take action to protect consumers, in the meantime, you can take steps to keep your personal care routine safe.

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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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News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund | Solid Waste

Lawmakers and public push Whole Foods to put “Planet Over Plastic” at upcoming annual meeting

AUSTIN, Texas --  U.S. PIRG Education Fund , Environment America Research & Policy Center, and Student PIRG sent 59,000 petitions and a letter signed by more than 40 state lawmakers Thursday to Whole Foods urging the company to commit to a comprehensive plan for phasing out single-use plastic packaging from its stores. This follows a March 2021 letter signed by more than 130 advocacy and community groups calling on the national supermarket chain to adopt a bold response to the plastic pollution crisis.

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News Release | MASSPIRG Education Fund | Public Health

Dangerous secrets: Popular cosmetics brands fail to disclose ingredients

Boston -- Some of the largest cosmetic and personal care companies are doing a poor job informing the public on what ingredients are going into their products, hiding potentially toxic chemicals from consumers. The MASSPIRG Education Fund released USPIRG Education Fund’s scorecard report Wednesday that found 20 of 26 surveyed brands had failed to adequately disclose product ingredients to consumers. The report, entitled Looking Inward 2021: Where popular personal care brands stand on ingredient safety and disclosure, found the average ingredient disclosure score was 5.56 out of 10, or an F, pointing to a need for improvement across the industry.

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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.

> Keep Reading
News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund | Solid Waste

Lawmakers and public push Whole Foods to put “Planet Over Plastic” at upcoming annual meeting

AUSTIN, Texas --  U.S. PIRG Education Fund , Environment America Research & Policy Center, and Student PIRG sent 59,000 petitions and a letter signed by more than 40 state lawmakers Thursday to Whole Foods urging the company to commit to a comprehensive plan for phasing out single-use plastic packaging from its stores. This follows a March 2021 letter signed by more than 130 advocacy and community groups calling on the national supermarket chain to adopt a bold response to the plastic pollution crisis.

> Keep Reading
News Release | MASSPIRG Education Fund | Public Health

Dangerous secrets: Popular cosmetics brands fail to disclose ingredients

Boston -- Some of the largest cosmetic and personal care companies are doing a poor job informing the public on what ingredients are going into their products, hiding potentially toxic chemicals from consumers. The MASSPIRG Education Fund released USPIRG Education Fund’s scorecard report Wednesday that found 20 of 26 surveyed brands had failed to adequately disclose product ingredients to consumers. The report, entitled Looking Inward 2021: Where popular personal care brands stand on ingredient safety and disclosure, found the average ingredient disclosure score was 5.56 out of 10, or an F, pointing to a need for improvement across the industry.

> Keep Reading
News Release | MASSPIRG Education Fund | Consumer Protection

Report: Getting off the hook of a predatory tow in Massachusetts

BOSTON -- Every year, millions of Americans have their cars towed without their consent from a private property or public street. Too often, the unknown rationale behind these tows and what to do next can leave drivers stranded and confused. While getting towed is a justified consequence of parking in the wrong place or for too long, most states don’t offer drivers the decency of basic consumer protections such as access to their wallets or medicine, or maximum rates for towing and storage. And that doesn’t even take into consideration those times when drivers believe they’re towed improperly.

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News Release | U.S. PIRG | Solid Waste

Students host hundreds of local actions for Youth Earth Week

BOSTON - The Student PIRGs, a student environmental organizing group, is partnering with local organizations, student governments and elected officials to host in-person and virtual actions to celebrate Youth Earth Week, a national effort of more than 250 actions around the country to protect the environment, from April 19 to 23.

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Report | MASSPIRG Education Fund | Public Health

Looking Inward 2021

Some of the largest cosmetic and personal care companies are doing a poor job informing the public on what ingredients are going into their products, hiding potentially toxic chemicals from consumers. This report found 20 of 26 surveyed brands had failed to adequately disclose product ingredients to consumers and the average ingredient disclosure score was 5.56 out of 10, or an F, pointing to a need for improvement across the industry.

> Keep Reading
Report | MASSPIRG Education Fund | Consumer Protection

Getting Off The Hook of a Predatory Tow

Every year, millions of Americans have their cars towed without their consent from a private property or public street. Too often, the unknown rationale behind these tows and what to do next can leave drivers stranded and confused. While getting towed is a justified consequence of parking in the wrong place or for too long, most states don’t offer drivers the decency of basic consumer protections such as access to their wallets or medicine, or maximum rates for towing and storage. And that doesn’t even take into consideration those times when drivers believe they’re towed improperly.

> Keep Reading
Report | MASSPIRG Education Fund

Transform Transportation

The Commonwealth's current transportation system has been designed, built and centered around the automobile, and it is a public health disaster. MASSPIRG Education Fund and Frontier Group’s latest report, Transform Transportation, identifies the numerous harmful health impacts caused by the Bay State's car-centric transportation system and provides a three-step roadmap toward a healthier, more sustainable approach to transportation infrastructure.

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Report | MASSPIRG | COVID-19

Nursing Home Safety During Covid: Cases and Vaccines

Hundreds of U.S. nursing homes this year are reporting their very first cases of COVID-19 after avoiding any cases all of last year. That 437 nursing homes experienced their very first cases of COVID this year — while fending them off during the horror of 2020 — is among the clear indications that this pandemic isn’t over.

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Report | U.S.PIRG Education Fund

Vital and Undervalued

As the pandemic has painfully reminded us, our entire society depends on caregivers yet we undervalue the vital contributions of unpaid family caregivers. It benefits all of us when it is possible for people to care for their loved ones who need care, so we should increase support for family caregivers.

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Pages

Blog Post

You’re not crazy: your appliances were built to fail you | Anne Marie Green

Why appliances aren’t built to last, and how the E.U. is changing that. 

> Keep Reading
Blog Post | Consumer Tips

7 types of ingredients to avoid in your personal care routineDanielle MelgarGina Werdel

A scorecard released by U.S. PIRG Education Fund found that many popular cosmetic brands score poorly on ingredient safety and disclosure. While companies and governments need to take action to protect consumers, in the meantime, you can take steps to keep your personal care routine safe.

> Keep Reading
Blog Post | Solid Waste

How e-waste is creating a growing environmental and health crisis across the worldAnne Marie GreenHaley Clinton

We need policies like Right to Repair to address the dangerous flood of electronics waste

> Keep Reading
Blog Post

Dude, where’s my car? | Mark Morgenstein

Getting your vehicle towed can be a memorable experience -- not in a good way

> Keep Reading
Blog Post | COVID-19

COVID-19 tests and vaccines are free to consumers. End of story. | Patricia Kelmar

Some consumers continue to be billed for COVID tests and vaccines. So let's get the story straight here.

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Pages

Blog Post

You’re not crazy: your appliances were built to fail you

Why appliances aren’t built to last, and how the E.U. is changing that. 

Blog Post

7 types of ingredients to avoid in your personal care routine

A scorecard released by U.S. PIRG Education Fund found that many popular cosmetic brands score poorly on ingredient safety and disclosure. While companies and governments need to take action to protect consumers, in the meantime, you can take steps to keep your personal care routine safe.

News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund

Lawmakers and public push Whole Foods to put “Planet Over Plastic” at upcoming annual meeting

AUSTIN, Texas --  U.S. PIRG Education Fund , Environment America Research & Policy Center, and Student PIRG sent 59,000 petitions and a letter signed by more than 40 state lawmakers Thursday to Whole Foods urging the company to commit to a comprehensive plan for phasing out single-use plastic packaging from its stores. This follows a March 2021 letter signed by more than 130 advocacy and community groups calling on the national supermarket chain to adopt a bold response to the plastic pollution crisis.

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.

Report | MASSPIRG Education Fund

Looking Inward 2021

Some of the largest cosmetic and personal care companies are doing a poor job informing the public on what ingredients are going into their products, hiding potentially toxic chemicals from consumers. This report found 20 of 26 surveyed brands had failed to adequately disclose product ingredients to consumers and the average ingredient disclosure score was 5.56 out of 10, or an F, pointing to a need for improvement across the industry.

  • 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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MASSPIRG Education Fund is part of The Public Interest Network, which operates and supports organizations committed to a shared vision of a better world and a strategic approach to social change.