Reports

Saving Dollars, Saving Democracy

Millions are being wasted due to antiquated voter registration systems and procedures. U.S. PIRG Education Fund’s survey of 100 counties showed that over $33,467,910.00 of public money was spent on simple registration implementation and error-correction issues in 2008. The Fund finds that a more streamlined and automatic system linking existing databases with the state voter rolls could free up significant resources at the local level.

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Report | Health Care

The Three Trillion Dollar Question: What Health Care Reform Can Save For Families, Businesses and Taxpayers

Without health care reform, the United States is projected to spend over $40 trillion on health care in the next decade. Experts estimate that thirty percent of that spending – up to $12 trillion dollars – will be wasted on ineffective care, pointless red tape, and counterproductive treatments that can actually harm patients.

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Report | Student PIRGs, Demos, United States Student Association | Higher Ed

Subpriming Our Students

New Briefing Paper Says College Students Need Consumer Financial Protection Agency to ‘Watchdog’ Risky Loans.

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Report | Transit

The Right Track

America’s highways and airports are increasingly congested. Our nation’s transportation system remains dependent on oil. And our existing transportation infrastructure is inadequate to the demands of the 21st century. The United States should build an efficient and fast passenger rail network, with high-speed rail as a central component, to help address the nation’s transportation challenges in the 21st century.

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Report | Consumer Protection, Higher Ed

Campus Credit Card Trap

This study is an in-person survey of a diverse sample of over 1500 students, primarily single undergraduates, at 40 large and small schools and universities in 14 states around the country conducted between October 2007 and February 2008. It analyzes how students pay for their education, how many use and how they use credit cards and, as an important goal of the survey, their attitudes toward credit card marketing on campus and whether or not they support principles to rein in credit card marketing on campus.