Consumer Protection

A looming deadline should finally force all U.S. phone companies to take stopping robocalls seriously. However, according to a new report by the Arizona PIRG Education Fund, Make the Ringing Stop: The FCC is Finally Fighting Back Against Robocalls, only one-third of the largest mobile and home phone providers nationwide have installed caller ID verification aimed at squashing illegal robocalls, even though many of those businesses were required to do so by June. The stakes get higher Sept. 28 when phone providers are required to block calls from companies that haven’t at least reported their status to the Federal Communications Commission.

According to the Arizona PIRG Education Fund and Wildfire: Igniting Community Action to End Poverty in Arizona, the elected Salt River Project Board of Directors today failed SRP customers by approving 16 gas units at the cost of approximately $1 billion dollars without proper scrutiny.

With the official public comment period now closed, the Arizona PIRG Education Fund urged the Arizona Corporation Commission to review the substantial number of independent reports and ratepayer comments that have been provided as part of the Energy Rules, and to schedule a long overdue final vote within the next two months.

The Veterans and Consumers Fair Credit Act (VCFCA) was reintroduced in the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs on Wednesday. This bill would limit interest rates on loans and go a long way toward protecting consumers, especially veterans, who are often victimized by predatory lenders.