In the recent Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission decision, the Supreme Court ruled that corporations are legally "persons," and thus have a right to spend freely to influence elections. This opens the floodgates for corporate spending, allowing corporations like ExxonMobil to spare no expense in protecting their interests at the expense of ours.
We're hosting a video contest to highlight the dangerous implications of the Supreme Court's radical Citizen's United decision.
No matter what the Supreme Court says, a corporation is not, nor has it ever been, a person. They do not have voting rights, they cannot get married, they cannot die, they are not denied alcohol purchase until age 18, and foreign corporations certainly don't need a VISA to work in the U.S.
Despite this, the Court decided that they have the same rights as people to use their immense wealth to influence elections. It begs the question, what do you think the world would be like if corporations were treated just like people?
We’ll use the videos as part of our effort to educate local and state representatives and to call on Washington to legislate a solution to the sweeping decision of the Supreme Court.
Entries are due by April 15th and the winning video will be featured on The Huffington Post. See our contest page for full contest rules, entry criteria, scope out your competition, and to submit your video.
In the 2010 State of the Union address Obama said it well: "Last week the Supreme Court reversed a century of law to open the floodgates for special interests - including foreign companies - to spend without limit in our elections. Well, I don't think American elections should be bankrolled by America's most powerful interests, and worse, by foreign entities. They should be decided by the American people, and that's why I'm urging Democrats and Republicans to pass a bill that helps to right this wrong."
In the last few weeks hundreds of students have submitted "I support clean energy because..." letters to their Senators, and they make one thing clear: there are countless reasons why it's time to bring clean energy to America.
Join thousands of students who are calling our Senators this week to let them know we support clean energy: http://studentpirgs.org/72hours
We're running out of time to get our Senators to pass a national clean energy plan - but we're in it to win it.
By launching a 21st century energy plan for America, we can create millions of green jobs, jump start the economy, and begin to solve global warming.
We've teamed up with dozens of organizations across the country to host this 72 hour phone blitz to our Senators because the more calls we make, the more they'll pay attention to us.
We all have our own reasons for supporting clean energy. And our Senators need to hear them all.
Alaska’s Senator Lisa Murkowski has been working to pass a bill to stop the Environmental Protection Agency from requiring reductions in global warming pollution. This legislation doesn't protect us, in fact, it does the opposite- it is basically a "Dirty Air Act."
Global warming pollution poses a threat to our environment and our public health, and the EPA should be able to regulate it. Students leaders from the Student PIRGs are working
with the Clean Energy Works
Campaign to demonstrate student opposition to the "Dirty Air Act." On Tuesday, February 23rd, two-dozen students went to Capitol Hill and passed out No Dirty Air Act masks and stickers to every single Senator’s office as well as several key House members.
Later that day, the students attended a Senate Budget hearing to support EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson as she defended the EPA's decision that global warming pollution poses a threat to the planet and needs to be regulated. The students then lined up behind Senator Murkowski in the masks.
The next night, the students stationed themselves with No Dirty Air Act signs outside a fundraiser attended by Senator Murkowski and lobbyists for the Nuclear Energy Institute, Duke Energy, and Peabody Energy. Watch a video of Senator Murkowski walking by the student protesters. Senator Murkowski acknowledged the protesters, saying, "I actually had an event here in Washington last night and I had my own group of protestors show up, and I guess you know you’ve arrived in politics when you generate your own group of protestors against you." Hear the audio clip here.
Until today, it was perfectly legal for credit card companies to profit by tricking people into paying late and then tripling the interest rate on their balances.
Not anymore.
The Credit CARD Act goes into effect today and includes this and other protections from abusive practices the banks have used to rip us off. It also offers college students additional special protections. Click here to read what's in it for you.
Students have an average of almost $3,000 in credit card debt when they graduate college. We use credit cards to pay for textbooks, transportation, and even tuition. Banks have used aggressive marketing tactics and abusive terms and conditions to trap us into deep credit card debt. For more information, check out these stories from U.S.
News and World Report and Inside Higher Ed.
It was the outcry of students like you that passed this law, and the banks aren't happy about it - this is the first time in 40 years any law opposed by credit card companies has passed!
Relying on private student loans to pay for college is like putting your education on a credit card. It's high risk and high cost - but it can feel like the only option.
Our Student Debt Alert campaign is working to raise awareness about the dangers and practices of private student loans and to make sure private lenders don't rip off students.
I'm collecting scans and photos of loan contracts in order to identify the terms and conditions that hurt students the most - private student loan contracts can have terrible terms and conditions. We plan on identifying the most the most common dangers and releasing a report to the media.
You can help by emailing or faxing us a copy of you loan contract/promissory note. Make sure to black out all your personal information, but please leave the year you signed the contract.
President Obama said in his State of the Union, "From the first railroads to the Interstate Highway System, our nation has always been built to compete. There's no reason Europe or China should have the fastest trains."
Then he distributed $8 billion nationwide to build and plan high speed rail in 31 states.
Having high-speed rail connecting all the major cities throughout the country would help our economy by providing thousands of sustainable jobs, reduce carbon emissions that cause global warming, clear up highway congestion, reduce our dependence on foreign oil, and improve our quality of life.
A national high speed rail network will reduce global warming pollution by 6 billion pounds, the equivalent of taking almost a half a million cars off the road.
We're keeping up the momentum for more and better public transportation and high speed rail by asking students, community members, and public leaders to sign onto our 21st Century Transportation Principles.
It's going to take a long-term commitment from our local and national leaders to plan and fund a national rail system. As we rebuild our transportation system, let’s make sure we do it right.
Student PIRG chapters are joining forces with student governments and student groups to hold Haiti Relief Days of Action and to organize long term fundraising projects. So far they have raised over $18,000 through mostly spare change drives.
At UW Madison, WISPIRG partnered with the Associated Student of Madison and student groups to hold a campus wide Haiti Relief Day of Action. With nearly $7,000 in donations reported so far, the day of action included 100 volunteers staffing donation tables, a local restaurant making matching donations for customers, and a dance party hosted by WSUM (the student run radio station). In addition to collecting funds, the volunteers passed out information about the disaster and offered students ways to get involved with further fundraising efforts.
Inspired by Madison's effort, the Day of Action spread statewide and included efforts from students at other UW campuses, including Eau Claire, Fox Valley, and Whitewater. Their fundraising totals have yet to be announced.
In his State of the Union Speech last night, President Obama recommitted to an increased investment in higher education, reaffirming that investment in higher education is essential to our country’s recovery and long-term strength.
Obama urged Congress to increase Pell grants by passing the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act (SAFRA), help students better manage their crushing debt loads, and create a $10,000 education tax credit.
The passage of SAFRA will increase the Pell grant (the government’s need-based financial aid program) by at least $40 billion dollars by eliminating wasteful, unwarranted subsidies to banks and lenders, and redirecting the money to students.
President Obama also called for an expansion of the federal Income Based Repayment program to help students manage their rapidly increasing debt. His proposal would cap students' monthly federal loan repayments at 10% of their discretionary income and forgive their federal debt after 20 years or repayment.
Increased tuition costs have resulted in students and families over-relying on loans to pay for college. In 2008 students graduated with an average of a $23,200 in student loan debt. Too many students can't go to college because of the costs, don't graduate because their debt gets so high they have to drop out, or after graduation have to put off marriage, children, and home purchase because of their crushing debt. On campuses across the country, Student PIRGs' student interns and volunteers are working to raise the alarm on student debt and calling on their elected official to support President Obama's plan increase financial aid for students.
Haiti just experienced a massive earthquake. We don't yet know the full ramifications of this disaster, but the people of Haiti will need help from around the world to meet both their immediate needs and the long term effort to rebuild homes, schools, hospitals and cities.
Our Hunger and Homelessness campaign will be holding fundraisers on campuses in the months ahead to make sure organizations on the ground have the resources to get food, medicine and supplies to the people that need them.
Sign up to volunteer and help fundraise on your campus here.
It's easy to organize a fundraiser on campus. Learn how by downloading our Response Kit.
Donations are urgently needed - right now, we're recommending people direct donations to our friends at Oxfam through their website http://oxfamamerica.org. Oxfam has four offices in Haiti and over 200 highly-experienced aid workers.
Please contact the staff of the National Student Campaign Against Hunger and Homelessness with questions at Natalie@studentsagainsthunger.org.
Ticketmaster is the king of fees: a handling fee, a processing fee, a just-cause-we-can fee. These fees can add anywhere from 20 to 50 percent to the price of the ticket, and Ticketmaster has collected over $5 billion in these fees over the last 5 years.[1]
Unfortunately, it may get even worse. Ticketmaster wants to merge with Live Nation, its leading competitor. That would give them a virtual monopoly on ticket sales, and without competition there would be nothing to stop them from hiking up their fees even higher.
Ticketmaster fees are already extreme. For example, a report by the Washington Post found a typical concert where Ticketmaster added $16.60 in fees - $4.10 for "processing," $3.50 for "facilities," and a $9 "convenience charge" -- to a $56 dollar ticket, adding about 30 percent to the price of the ticket.
The Department of Justice is reviewing the merger and is expected to make a decision in the next few weeks, so now is the time to act.
A handful of PIRG students attended last Wednesday's forum at the White House on global warming and clean energy. The forum gave young people a chance to speak directly to administration officials, including Ken Salazar (Secretary of the Interior), Hilda Solis (Secretary of Labor), Steven
Chu (Secretary of Energy), Lisa Jackson (EPA Administrator), and Nancy Sutley
(chair of the White House's Council on Environmental Quality).
This afternoon, I'm attending a meeting at the White House with four of my fellow leaders from the Student PIRGs. We'll be amongst 100 youth leaders meeting with top officials from President Obama's cabinet to talk about our generation's role in solving global warming.
The Obama Administration is asking young people across the country to join the event by watching the forum live on Facebook, and sharing questions and feedback.
Clean Energy Economy Forum Wednesday, December 2 4-7 pm EST Watch on Facebook Watch on WhiteHouse.gov With: Ken Salazar (Interior Secretary), Hilda Solis (Labor Secretary), Steven Chu (Energy Secretary), Lisa Jackson (EPA Administrator), Nancy Sutley (Chair, Council on Environmental Quality), Carol Browner (Top Advisor on Energy and Climate Change)
On campuses across the country we've been taking action to solve global warming. Now, as President Obama works to secure international reductions in global warming pollution, he's looking to us for input on one of the most critical issues of our time.
Rich Williams, our Higher Education Associate in Washington D.C. recently spoke at a policy forum about the increasing burden of student debt and the steps we need to take to make a college education affordable.
In September, Rich worked with legislators and students to help pass the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act (SAFRA) through the House. SAFRA will increase financial aid for students by $87 billion over the next ten years by cutting subsidies to banks and private lenders like Sallie Mae and Citibank
The companion bill is now being considered in the Senate, and students across the country are working to make sure their Senators know they have their support to stand up to the banks and support student aid.
Read more about our Affordable Higher Education Campaign here.
It's National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week - a week when campuses and communities dedicate their time and energy to raise awareness about poverty issues and collect food, clothing, and donations for local poverty relief agencies.
The Awareness Week is particularly poignant this year. With unemployment rates above 12% and domestic hunger rates at a 14 year high, students are responding and taking action. At St. Louis Community College at Meramec students are teaming up with Operation Food Search to host a simulation of the challenges low income people face in securing food. At the University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point and the University of Colorado at Boulder students are hosting a Winter Clothing Drive to collect hats, gloves and winter coats for area shelter residents. And at Oberlin College students are showing a screening of the documentary, My Own Four Walls.
These are just a few of the ways students are participating in National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week. Hundreds of other campuses are participating by hosting canned food drives, sleep outs, panels, video screenings, and fundraisers.
It’s not too late to get your school on the list of participants. You can register your events and get resources for planning successful events at http://studentsagainsthunger.org/awareness-week.
Over 500 students and youth from Oregon and 13 western states descended on the University of Oregon this past weekend for PowerShift West.
Student activists learned skills and networked with peers around clean energy solutions and climate change. The event had four primary goals:
- Pass a strong climate bill and negotiate a strong International Climate Treaty in Copenhagen
- Generate support for a high-speed rail corridor from Eugene to Vancouver, B.C.
- Mobilize local community groups to address sustainable living practices
- Unite regional campuses to advocate plans to move beyond coal usage
"There's never been a better time to become more educated and involved in promoting clean, renewable energy in our communities," said Jeremy Blanchard, a core organizer and a UO student Senator. "The national success of PowerShift depends on the action we take locally, and we're encouraging students and young people to actively communicate with their local and state representatives so that our generation's voices are heard in the halls of Congress."
"Young people recognize that the current debate on climate change is critical for the future of a clean energy economy in the United States." said Charles Denson, OSPIRG State Board Chair. "Now is the time to invest in clean energy technologies that will rebuild the American economy and create millions of new jobs."
Students left Eugene inspired and ready for action - the movement is growing and PowerShift West was a weekend that many will never forget - a weekend that changed lives, united a small part of our generation, and strengthened the movement to solve global warming.
Coming out of the conference, students from across the state of Oregon made plans to implement a grassroots campaign on their campuses to strengthen the Senate climate bill. The campaign will culminate with a lobby day at five Senate offices across the state.
PowerShift West was organized by students working with Cascade Climate
Network (CCN), Oregon Student Public Interest Research Group (OSPIRG),
Sierra Student Coalition (SSC), and student groups at the University of
Oregon. For more on PowerShift West, check out news stories, here, here, here, and here!
NJPIRG has officially launched Energy Service Corps, a joint program with AmeriCorps. Energy Service Corps members and volunteers are working on and off campus to increase energy efficiency through education, service, and outreach.
Energy Service Corps is working to increase public awareness and knowledge about energy efficiency.They'll be hosting educational events, teaching lessons, conducting energy audits, and weatherizing homes - on campuses, in communities, and in K-12 classrooms.
As part of the launch 15 volunteers weatherized three off-campus student houses in New Brunswick, NJ. They taught the student residents how to caulk their windows, install weather-stripping, and wrap hot water pipes in foam insulation. These simple things can help them save up to 30% on utility bills. You can read about the events in the Rutgers Daily Targum and on CentralJersey.com
The fundraiser, called America's Giving Challenge, is a competition between nonprofits to see which group can collect the most donations online. Each day the group with the most donations wins money for their organization - we're trying to help the Resolve campaign win today's daily competition. They'll also be in the running for a $50,000 prize being given at the end of the contest.
Resolve to Fight Poverty is a national student movement that is working to end hunger and homelessness in communities across the country. Donations are tax-deductible and will go to fund staff and resources that Resolve will use to expand their network and improve their programs.
From November 5th – 8th, hundreds of students will come together at the Resolve 2009 conference to launch the Resolve to Fight Poverty -- a national student movement to alleviate poverty in communities across the country.
Students attending will hear the latest on the issues, learn the skills to take action, build alliances, and work together to ensure everyone can live in a world without poverty.
This is the critical week in our campaign to increase financial aid by
$40 billion.
The House and
President Obama are both strongly supporting a $40 billion investment in student aid, paid for
by cutting giveaways to the student loan companies. This week we're making sure the Senate gets on board as they craft their version of the bill.
We've been using social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter to raise the profile of the issue and make sure the Senate hears from students.
And today, in collaboration with USSA and Campus Progress, we are making sure the Senate hears directly from students by hosting a National Call In Day for Student Aid.
In many states, next week is the last week to register to vote before November elections.
They're not getting much attention yet, but many states will have elections this November. Last year young people voted in record numbers. We’re working to register and turn out young voters so we can keep the momentum going from 2008.
The easiest way to register is to do it online at http://StudentVote.org. Fill out your voter registration form on the website, then just print it out, sign it, and drop it in the mail.
Remember - if you have moved since you last registered, you need to register at your new address.
Yesterday, Student PIRG leaders on campuses across the country organized a National Call-In Day to urge Congress to pass strong legislation to tackle global warming. As the Senate debates what could be the biggest environmental legislation of our generation, we’re working to make sure they get it right.
At Indiana University, pouring rain didn’t keep students from trekking through the main quad to make their calls. IU students made over 250 calls into Senator Bayh's office. It’s not too late to make a call, you can do so here.
The Senate is back in session and the debate over the American Clean Energy and Security Act is going strong. It's critical that the Senate passes a strong global warming bill this fall to revitalize our economy and protect our future from global warming.
Unfortunately, oil and coal lobbyists are doing everything they
can to stop the bill from passing in the Senate. We're working on campuses across the country to educate the public about renewable energy and energy efficiency and build public support for strong action to stop global warming.
We're also organizing a National Call-In Day to the Senate on Thursday, September 24th, in order to make sure that our Senators are hearing from the public on this issue. If you're interested in organizing a call-in day on your campus, you can learn more here.
Earlier today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a
major reform to the financial aid system.
The bill, the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act, will increase
student aid and the Pell grant, and ensure that that the Pell grant increases
yearly with the cost of living. The $40
billion investment in financial aid will be funded by cutting subsidies to
private lenders like Sallie Mae and Citibank.
We've been working hard over the past few months (and
years) to show Congress that they need to start supporting students, not banks,
and we're excited that the House listened. Next step: the Senate, which we
expect to debate their own version of the bill next month.
Student loan debt can often seem like a
wall separating borrowers from their dreams, or even financial
independence, after graduation. Even before then, many borrowers have
to drop out of college when their debt burden is too high.
Recent graduates must often postpone
major life decisions like buying a car or getting married because of
high monthly payments. More and more borrowers who lose their job or
otherwise become unable to repay are plunging into default, which
drives up their debt even further.
Let's work together to make sure that fewer students leave college only to hit a wall of student debt.
The official student partner of the 9/11 Day of Service and Remembrance, the Student PIRGs will mobilize student service events on dozens of college campuses across the country.
The day will mark the culmination of President Obama’s Summer of Service initiative and will involve hundreds of thousands of volunteers in service activities that range from volunteer food drives to handing out energy-efficient light bulbs.
Today Congressman George Miller (CA), chair of the House Education and Labor committee, introduced a bill in Congress that would make a historic investment in student aid programs.
The bill would make the single biggest investment in student aid in history by reforming the Pell Grant program so that it would increase each year along with the cost of living; cutting the interest rate on subsidized Stafford loans; infusing community colleges with more funding and support; and making financial aid programs more efficient for students and taxpayers.
If passed, the bill would help tens of millions of
students and families who rely on grants, loans, and access to
community college to attain a college education. We'll be calling on the House Education and Labor committee and Congress to pass this historic legislation.
The federal Department of Education announced some good news for students who take out student loans. Their new income-based repayment option limits the size of a borrower's payments to a percentage of their income. Given the current economic woes and the rough job market facing graduates, this new program helps borrowers deal with difficult financial circumstances that might come their way. In addition, after borrowers make payments for 25 years, their balance is forgiven.
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