Consumer Advocacy at the National Level
Posted on March 22, 2011 by Andrea Crosby
Tags, Legislative & Political, Public Involvement and Coalitions
Last week CUB staff member Andrea Crosby traveled to our nation’s capital for the 2011 Consumer Assembly of the Consumer Federation of America (CFA). The agenda included presentations and roundtables covering the complete spectrum of consumer advocacy issues and debates. The annual conference aims to inform CFA members of current issues while receiving feedback, ideas, and suggestions on how to form and advance federal policy recommendations. The conference opened with an introduction by the Honorable Henry Waxman, the California representative known for his support of consumer rights and privacy, and his actions in Congress to support the public interest. His opening remarks regarding the current national policy environment were informative and realistic. He thanked all of the consumer groups for our efforts, and urged the audience to continue to work for the public interest.
Among the wide range of topics, a handful relate to CUB’s efforts here in Oregon. National decisions and policies regarding vehicle fuel economy, energy efficiency standards, communications, and more can impact the work we do at CUB. For example, the CFA is currently developing a policy resolution that proposes an increase of the average fuel standard for motor vehicles to 60 miles per gallon by 2025. The CFA is requesting comments from state consumer advocate agencies and organizations to present to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Changes in the national policies can help CUB advocate at the state level and influence the state’s debates.
A hot topic at the conference was internet access, and the various consumer protection debates that arise from the advancement of technology and the complexity of the products available. The internet remains a grey area for federal regulators, but consumer advocate groups are constantly fighting to protect consumer privacy and rights. Ellen Bloom, the Director of Federal Policy for the Consumers Union, mentioned a number of issues, but focused on the need to oppose repeals that will destroy the advances that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has made with the Bill Shock Rule and Net Neutrality ruling. The Bill Shock Rule requires mobile service providers to send alerts to consumers when they are about to exceed their allocated amount of voice, texting, and data in order to help customers avoid unmanageable increases to their bills when these allocations are exceeded. The Net Neutrality Ruling aims to keep the internet open to all users and prevents internet providers from favoring or discriminating against traffic that goes over their networks. Opposing repeal motions from the 112th US Congress to both of these rulings are critical for the consumer movement.
CUB remains a proud member of the Consumer Federation of America to stay informed about these issues and more. We’ll update you going forward on topics of importance to Oregon consumers, and we look forward to attending the Consumer Assembly next year.
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03/23/17 | 0 Comments | Consumer Advocacy at the National Level