July 2022 • Issue 1, Volume 13 • www.consumer-action.org
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What people are saying
This was a great opportunity to learn more about the ACP [Affordable Connectivity Program]. [The webinar] was very in-depth and easy to understand! Thank you! --Stanley Christian, Barren River Area Development District, Bowling Green, KY
Did you know?
Raising the cap on wages subject to the Social Security payroll tax could help Social Security remain solvent far beyond the current 2034 insolvency projection. In 2022, the tax is applied only to the first $147,000 of an individual's earnings--people earning more stop paying the tax when they reach the cap. According to a 2021 report by the Congressional Research Service, workers earning below the cap pay a larger proportion of their income than workers whose earnings exceed it. The authors of a proposed House bill, the Social Security 2100 Act, say it would, among other things, enable Social Security to achieve solvency over the next 75 years--a significant feat--by requiring the wealthiest American households to pay their fair share of taxes.
Discussing social media harms and kids' online safety
By Nelson Santiago
A panel of California leaders, policymakers and tech advocates, assembled by the nonprofit Common Sense Media, discussed tech-related issues that affect children--from mental health and body image to misinformation and privacy--as well as some of the solutions being proposed by the state legislature to create a better online world for California's kids. Read more.
Hotline Chronicles: Where's my 'loot'?
By Linda Sherry
A subscription-based company selling monthly shipments of "geek and gamer gear" filed for Chapter 11 in 2019. Despite promising to continue filling orders on schedule, the company has only been delivering headaches for its subscribers. Read more.
Out and About: Debt and the racial wealth gap
By Audrey Perrott
We report on an event examining debt and its effect on household wealth. Too often, anti-discrimination laws and promises of equality have been ineffective in closing the racial wealth gap. Panelists explored the causes of and potential solutions to the problem. Read more.
Coalition Efforts: Measures would enhance privacy, expand homeownership and improve financial wellbeing
By Monica Steinisch
Consumer Action often joins its allies in letters, comments and complaints calling for change, standing up for consumer rights, supporting or opposing proposed laws, pressing for enforcement, and objecting to corporate misbehavior, among other activities. We collect these in the Coalition Efforts section of our website. Each month in the INSIDER, we highlight some recent activities. Read more.
CFPB Watch: Employee training debt traps; and medical debt mistakes can end military careers
By Ruth Susswein
In this regular feature, we detail recent actions taken by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). This month, the Bureau is gathering info on employee training debt traps where workers become ensnared in training repayment agreements, and servicemembers complain that inaccurate debts on their credit reports could cost them their jobs. Read more.
Class Action Database: Unwanted sunscreen ingredient burns J&J
By Rose Chan
Consumer Action maintains a database of class actions so that interested consumers can learn more, join a pending action or make a claim. Class action lawsuits are an important element of consumer protection and can force changes to anti-consumer business practices and make bad actors return ill-gotten gains to consumers. Read more.
About Consumer Action
Consumer Action has been a champion of underrepresented consumers nationwide since 1971. A nonprofit organization, Consumer Action focuses on consumer education that empowers low- and moderate-income and limited-English-speaking consumers to financially prosper. It also advocates for consumers in the media and before lawmakers to advance consumer rights and promote industry-wide change.
By providing consumer education materials in multiple languages, a free national hotline, a comprehensive website and special reports about financial and consumer services, Consumer Action helps consumers assert their rights in the marketplace and make financially savvy choices. More than 6,500 community and grassroots organizations benefit annually from its extensive outreach programs, training materials and support. Read more.
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