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News Release | US PIRG | Consumer Tips, COVID-19

Money for nothing: Paying the same car insurance while driving less during the pandemic

While COVID-19 is causing financial difficulties for tens of millions of Americans, auto insurers nationwide have made tens of billions of dollars in profit because consumers have driven significantly less during the pandemic.

News Release | U.S. PIRG | Financial Reform

Federal regulators, states file antitrust lawsuits against Facebook

Statement: "U.S. PIRG welcomes the Facebook lawsuits by 48 state and territorial attorneys general and federal regulators."

News Release | TexPIRG Education Fund | Transportation

Texas has most ‘Highway Boondoggles’ of any state in the nation: report

Texas has been singled out as the state with the highest number of egregious highway boondoggle projects in a new report by TexPIRG Education Fund and Frontier Group. Despite boasting one of the most extensive highway systems of any state in the country and huge budget shortfalls caused by COVID-19, Texas is planning to spend nearly $3 billion to expand Loop 1604 in San Antonio and build the Southeast Connector in Fort Worth.
These two new boondoggle projects join a list of two other already active boondoggles for a total of eight in the last decade--three more than any other state.
“Texas really needs to get its act together,” said Bay Scoggin, director of the Texas Public Interest Research Group. “TxDoT is already billions of dollars in debt, with billions more on the way, and they still insist on throwing good money after bad, investing more in proven failures. These projects lead to more pollution, more gridlock and more budget shortfalls."

News Release | TexPIRG | COVID-19

Texas Department of Insurance’s Misinformation and Inaction Stall Efforts to Ensure Proper COVID Auto Insurance Refunds for Texans

 

In another setback to ensuring that Texans get appropriate auto insurance refunds due to fewer claims and less driving, the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) released misleading information to public officials. The information asserts an unsupported claim that drivers have seen $1.4 billion in insurance overcharges returned back into their wallets, one that is contradicted by market data.
Texas Appleseed, the Center for Economic Justice, Texas Watch, the Texas Public Interest Research Group (TexPIRG), and the Consumer Federation of America sent a letter to TDI and Texas legislators highlighting erroneous and misleading information that TDI has used to justify their failure to provide premium relief to consumers.

News Release | TexPIRG Education Fund | COVID-19

White House task force urges action to curb COVID spread in Texas

As the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) rages across Texas, federal officials urged Texas lawmakers Tuesday to take immediate action to curb the spread of the virus, according to a recent report. 

Hospitalizations in Texas have jumped 24 percent in the last two weeks. Those numbers will likely rise and overtax the state’s hospitals after too many Texans and other Americans ignored the warnings of health experts and traveled and gathered for Thanksgiving. 

Bay Scoggin, TexPIRG Director, issued the following statement in response:

“COVID-19 is raging out of control in Texas. We have already lost far too many lives to the virus. Given how widespread the virus is now, the best way to break the chains of transmission and get cases down quickly is by instituting a temporary stay-at-home order across the state, painful as that may sound."

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