government

By cwalters 9.20.07

../../../..//2007/09/20/the-us-house-of/

The U.S. House of Representatives approved “passenger rights” legislation today when it approved a bill to fund the Federal Aviation Administration. The passenger rights amendment gives the government the ability to force airlines to change their schedules if they “aggravated delays by operating too many flights at peak periods at the busiest airports.” Also included in the bill: a hike on the passenger facility charge on a ticket, from $4.50 to $7. [Reuters]

MediaDefender's Emails Hit The Internet: Entrapment? The New York Attorney General's Office?

MediaDefender's Emails Hit The Internet: Entrapment? The New York Attorney General's Office?

By 9.17.07

MediaDefender, a company that “disrupts” p2p on behalf of record labels and movie studios, suffered an embarrassing leak this weekend when 700MB of internal company emails were distributed on the internet. Oops!

Schwarzenegger Signs Bill Banning Minors From Using Cellphones While Driving

Schwarzenegger Signs Bill Banning Minors From Using Cellphones While Driving

By 9.17.07

Sorry, kids. It’s now illegal for you to talk on your cellphones while driving in California. Why? Because you’re bad at it, and let’s face it… you’re not that good at driving in the first place. Sadly for you, it’s much easier to slap a ban on you (rather than your parents) because you don’t vote and you have limited rights. Ha, ha, ha.

Teens cited under SB33, authored by state Sen. Joe Simitian, D-Palo Alto, face a fine of $20 for a first offense and $50 each time after that. Officials said traffic officers will not be allowed to pull drivers over simply because of a cell phone infraction, and violations will not count as part of the traffic safety point system. Emergency calls will be exempt.

China Appoints Tough Anti-Poison Czar

China Appoints Tough Anti-Poison Czar

By consumeristcarey 9.15.07

Meet Wu Yi. The 68-year old Vice Premier, the highest ranking woman in the Communist Party, has been tasked with one mission: toss the Chinese Poison Train back into the rapidly industrializing nation’s toy-chest.

Federal Government Boldly Declares: "It Is Impossible To Inspect Our Way To Safety"

Federal Government Boldly Declares: "It Is Impossible To Inspect Our Way To Safety"

By consumeristcarey 9.15.07

Inspections will not keep Americans safe from potentially dangerous foreign imports, according to a Presidential working group representing 12 federal agencies. The working group believes that the sheer number of products arriving at our ports – goods worth $2 trillion, last year – make the development and deployment of an inspection regime impossible. The alternative inspires little confidence.

China Puts Skulls on Cigarette Packs, Bypasses Toys For Now

China Puts Skulls on Cigarette Packs, Bypasses Toys For Now

By cwalters 9.12.07

China’s had such a bad safety record lately that it’s a little surprising to find out their latest plans for health warnings on packs of cigarettes: skulls, blackened teeth, and diseased lungs, covering at least 30% of the pack’s surface area. The move is an attempt to curb the growing market of smokers in the country, where the average age of people who start smoking is as low as 10 in some areas.

Judge Tosses NYC Menu Labeling Regulation

Judge Tosses NYC Menu Labeling Regulation

By 9.11.07

UPDATE: Menu labeling isn’t dead yet, the CSPI says the judge objected to an easily fixable condition of the NYC regulation.

Department of Justice Says No To Net Neutrality

Department of Justice Says No To Net Neutrality

By cwalters 9.7.07

The U.S. Department of Justice officially spoke out against net neutrality this week, in a filing with the FCC that says such regulations would “prevent, rather than promote, optimal investment and innovation in the Internet, with significant negative effects for the economy and consumers.” The department says the free market has done just fine so far, and that “precluding broadband providers from charging [content providers] directly for faster or more reliable service” could shift the burden of cost directly onto consumers.

Critics Say Consumer Agency Needs Complete Overhaul

Critics Say Consumer Agency Needs Complete Overhaul

By cwalters 9.6.07

The CPSC is understaffed and underfunded, and it needs a complete overhaul of its mission if it’s to be effective at all in protecting US consumers, says Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin (D):

“The laws are written sadly in a way to make it next to impossible to protect consumers. 401 (CPSC) employees today trying to manage trillions of dollars in products … they do not have enough cops on the beat.”

Mattel's Reputation With The CPSC Is Officially Crappy

Mattel's Reputation With The CPSC Is Officially Crappy

By 9.4.07

Mattel is being investigated (again) by the CPSC over the timeliness of its latest batch of recalls. According to the WSJ, Mattel knows it is required to inform the agency within 24 hours of receiving information about a defect that could cause injury—it just doesn’t do it because it thinks its not fair.

CPSC Has Only One Full-Time Toy Tester

CPSC Has Only One Full-Time Toy Tester

By consumerist.com 9.4.07

The CPSC is so underfunded that they can only afford one full-time toy tester, and his impact test area is located in the swing area behind the door to his cramped office, NYT reports.

Credit Card Late Fees Might Be Unconstitutional?

Credit Card Late Fees Might Be Unconstitutional?

By 9.4.07

Over at the Consumer Law & Policy Blog they’ve posted the abstract of a article that considers the constitutionality of credit card late fees. Apparently, there are “constitutional constraints upon the imposition of punitive damages.” Neat. The article by Seana Shiffrin and is called “Are Credit Card Late Fees Unconstitutional?”

State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. v. Campbell articulated serious and specific constitutional constraints upon the imposition of punitive damages. Justice Kennedy’s majority opinion announced that, apart from exceptional cases, punitive damages should not exceed nine times the amount of the actual losses sustained by the plaintiff and should usually be far lower…

Will Spitzer's Proposed Child Protection Laws Work?

Will Spitzer's Proposed Child Protection Laws Work?

By 8.22.07

As we mentioned earlier, Elliot Spitzer, the governor of New York, seems a bit miffed about the whole lead recall thing. He’s issued a press release about some “initiatives” he’s taking in response to the recent recalls because he feels the CPSC doesn’t have enough power to deal with the problem.

New York Decries CPSC's Inability To Impose Mandatory Recalls, Announces Initiatives To Combat Lead Poisoning

New York Decries CPSC's Inability To Impose Mandatory Recalls, Announces Initiatives To Combat Lead Poisoning

By consumeristcarey 8.18.07

New York Governor Eliot Spitzer is taking action to ensure the prompt removal of recalled products, responding to the CPSC’s unwillingness to ask for, or accept, the authority to impose mandatory recalls. The following proposals do not require approval by the Legislature, and will go into effect immediately:

8 Traffic Ticket Myths

8 Traffic Ticket Myths

By 8.17.07

Bankrate has listed 8 myths about traffic tickets and we like it! Spending money on traffic tickets is a huge waste.

LAX Meltdown Caused By A Single Network Interface Card

LAX Meltdown Caused By A Single Network Interface Card

By 8.15.07

The card, which allows computers to connect to a local area network, experienced a partial failure that started about 12:50 p.m. Saturday, slowing down the system, said Jennifer Connors, a chief in the office of field operations for the Customs and Border Protection agency.

New York's Lost And Found System For Taxis Is Awful

New York's Lost And Found System For Taxis Is Awful

By 8.14.07

– There is no way to contact the garage without a receipt.

There are a few more at Gothamist. We have to wonder, if your system is going to suck that bad… why even have it? It would be better to have a sign that says, “If you leave stuff in the taxi it is immediately eaten by bears. Don’t waste your time calling us.”

Website Offers 411 For Financial Questions

By cwalters 8.12.07

In July, federal regulators launched a new website, HelpWithMyBank.gov, to answer your basic bank-related questions, as well as to provide an easy way to lodge complaints about any of the 1,800 offending financial institutions that fall under its purview. (Yes, that includes Chase and BofA.)

«Previous Page
Next Page»