Smarting from its continued failure to check the expansive growth of the unitary executive, the Senate has decided to assert itself by derailing an agreed upon economic stimulus plan. Senate leaders are now insisting that the stimulus plan contain an extra $25 billion to fund road work, tax cuts, and extend unemployment insurance.
wonkette
Economic Stimulus Plan Passes
By 1.24.08
Accord was reached and the economic stimulus plan has passed. Here’s a brass tacks breakdown:
$800-$1600 Rebates Expected In Bush Stimulus Plan
By 1.18.08
It looks like Bush’s economic stimulus package is going to take the form of instant cash bonuses: $800 for individuals and $1600 for married couples. That’s dumb, everyone should get Costco coupons! All kidding aside, the NYT says the ~$500 rebates granted after the 2001 recessions proved “surprisingly effective…people spent most of the money rather than salting it away in savings or using it to pay down credit card debt. A 2004 study by economists at the Department of Labor, Princeton University, and the University of Pennsylvania found that households spent between 20 and 40 percent of the rebate within three months and another third in the following three months.” Will this “wealth surge” be just what the countries needs to beat back the forces of recession holed up in our economy, terrorizing our financial well-being? Bring on Operation Cash Dump.
Do Presidential Candidates Care About Consumer Issues?
By 1.7.08
Most Presidential candidates could not care less about consumer protection, but several have taken a stand on one of the sexier consumer issues: toy safety. Let’s break down where they stand.
Congress Actually Passed Consumer-Friendly Legislation In 2007
By 12.31.07
Members of Congress introduced 7,440 bills this year and almost none of them help consumers in any meaningful way. Less than fifteen bills this session snagged our editorial love. Most cleared only one chamber, and some still haven’t earned a hearing—but maybe when Congress returns they’ll lob a few of our favorites towards Pennsylvania Ave.
Liveblogging The Media Consolidation Showdown Between The FCC And The Senate Commerce Committee
By 12.13.07
Join us at 10 a.m. for the FCC’s showdown with the Senate Commerce Committee. The hearing comes one day after Democratic Commissioners Jonathan Adelstein and Michael Copps pilloried Chairman Kevin Martin’s plan to allow one company to control a newspaper and television or radio station in the same city as: “a mish-mash of half-baked ideas.”
Liveblogging The Senate Judiciary Subcommittee Hearing On The Arbitration Fairness Act
By 12.12.07
Join us at 9:30 as we liveblog the Arbitration Fairness Act’s second hearing before Congress. Arbitration is an extrajudicial jury-free way to resolve disputes where decisions are handed down by arbitrators who rule against consumers in 98.4% of cases. The Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution will be considering S. 1782, an Act to banish mandatory binding arbitration from consumer disputes.
Liveblogging The Media Consolidation Showdown Between The FCC And The House Telecommunications and the Internet Subcommittee
By 12.5.07
Starting today at 9:30 a.m. the House will drag FCC Chairman Kevin Martin and his colleagues before the Telecommunications and the Internet Subcommittee to explain their misguided and widely-criticized media consolidation plan that would allow one company to control several radio and television stations in the same city. The hearing comes two days after John Dingell (D-MI,) who will be chairing the hearing, accused Martin of abusing his power and intentionally keeping his fellow Commissioners in the dark. Just yesterday, the Senate Commerce Committee voted to ban the FCC from moving forward with their planned vote until they first complete a comprehensive study of broadcasters’ commitment to local news and ownership opportunities for women and minorities.
Liveblogging The Senate Permanent Subcommittee On Investigations Hearing On Arbitrary Credit Card Rate Increases
By 12.4.07
Today at 9:30 a.m., Senator Carl Levin (D-MI) will continue his investigation into the unfair and deceptive practices of the credit card industry. Today’s topic: arbitrary rate increases for cardholders in good standing. The hearing picks up where Senator Levin left off in March, when he questioned the use of excessive fees, interest charges, and the abuse of grace periods.
Net Neutrality Roars Back Onto The Congressional Agenda
By 12.1.07
Net neutrality advocates led by Congressman Edward Markey (D-MA) are working overtime to turn net neutrality into an election year issue. Markey, who chairs the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet, plans to introduce legislation later this month and push for hearings in both chambers. Could net neutrality actually make it through Congress this time?
Liveblogging The Senate Commerce Committee Hearing On Cigarettes, The FTC, And Deceptive Advertising
By 11.13.07
Starting today at 2:30 p.m., the Senate Commerce Committee will ask the FTC why it can’t accurately measure the level of tar or nicotine in cigarettes. The Commission has admitted: “[our] ratings tend to be relatively poor predictors of tar and nicotine exposure.” The Committee is concerned that “light” and “ultra light” cigarettes are really just dolled-up deathsticks slapped a pretty name, and that the FTC doesn’t have sufficient legal firepower to stamp out deceptive marketing practices.
Liveblogging The Senate Commerce Committee Hearing On Media Consolidation
By 11.8.07
Starting at 10 a.m., the Senate Commerce Committee will try to derail the Federal Communications Commission’s plans to make it easier for any one company to control several radio and television stations in the same city. The move would benefit the six major conglomerates that own the vast majority of media outlets to the detriment of minorities and local interests, whose voice is rarely represented in the broader media.
Liveblogging The Do Not Call Improvement Act and CPSC Reform Act Committee Markups
By 10.30.07
Get ready for dual-chamber coverage of the House and Senate markups of the Do Not Call Improvement Act and the CPSC Reform Act, starting at 2 pm. The FTC-supported Do Not Call Improvement Act would make Do Not Call registrations permanent. The House is set to consider its version, H.R. 3541, in the House Energy and Commerce Committee at 2 pm, while the Senate Commerce Committee will markup its own version, S. 2096, at 2:30 pm. The Senate will also markup S. 2045, the CPSC Reauthorization Act, which would boost the CPSC budget to almost $150 million, add 80 new staffers, and increase the CPSC’s maximum fine from $1.8 million to $100 million.
Liveblogging The House Judiciary Subcommittee Hearing On The Arbitration Fairness Act
By 10.25.07
Consumers may finally escape from the clutches of mandatory binding arbitration if the House Judiciary Committee smiles favorably today upon the Arbitration Fairness Act. Arbitrators rule against consumers in more than 98% of all disputes; the Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law is currently meeting to consider H.R. 3010, which would restore consumers’ rights to resolve disputes fairly and openly.
Liveblogging The Senate Commerce Committee Hearing On Toys, Children's Products, And The Chinese Sweatshops In Which They're Made
By 10.25.07
Starting today at 9:30 a.m., the Senate Commerce Committee will examine the lives of the young Chinese workers who assemble our Barbies and Tiggers without the workforce protections or social safety nets enjoyed by western workers.
DC Scraps Zone System, Cabbies Threaten To Strike
By 10.20.07
Cab rides in Washington will soon be cheaper thanks to Mayor Adrian Fenty’s decision to scrap the DC’s antiquated and expensive zone system in favor of the modern meter system found in any respectable city. Cheaper fares for residents means less profit for cabbies. Said one: “There is no way we can make a living on a [time-and-distance] meter.”
“The talk of a strike is in the formulation plans,” said Nathan Price, a driver for Yellow Cab Company of D.C. Inc. and a spokesman for the D.C. Professional Taxicab Drivers Association (PTDA).
Liveblogging The Senate Commerce Committee Hearing: Cellphone Companies And The Customers They Hate
By 10.17.07
Today at 10 a.m., the Senate Commerce Committee will pry through bone and muscle to see if cellphone companies really do have hearts of pure stone. The Committee will question the industry’s most egregious practices: junk fees, illegal contract extensions, and early termination fees. The industry is working overtime to cast itself as the consumer’s best friend, with AT&T recently agreeing to prorate ETFs as part of a desperate attempt to show that federal regulation is unnecessary.
Liveblogging the Senate Commerce Committee Hearing On CPSC Reform
By 10.4.07
Both CPSC Commissioners are expected to testify, along with a slate of interest groups like U.S. PIRG, Consumer Federation of America, Safe Kids Worldwide, the National Association of Manufacturers, and the oddly named Global Supply Chain Policy Retail Industry Leaders Association.
