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Report | Iowa PIRG Education Fund and Demos | Democracy

Million-Dollar Megaphones

Although each major party presidential candidate will likely break previous fundraising records, the big story of the 2012 election has been the role of Super PACs, nonprofits and outside spending generally.

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News Release | Iowa PIRG | Safe Energy, Transportation

New Coalition Sets High Goals for Job Creation and Cost Savings

Today, leaders across Iowa revealed a plan to create 20,000 new clean energy jobs and save consumers at least $1 billion per year by 2020 through investment in renewable energy, energy efficiency, and transportation priorities. Working as part of a coalition consisting of over thirty local organizations and businesses, Iowa Renewable Energy Jobs 2020 (IREJ2020) emphasizes the role of energy and transportation solutions in re-building Iowa’s workforce and economy.

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Media Hit | Higher Ed

PIRG Makes Another Call to Stop Student Loan Interest Rate Hike

As the clock ticks down to a student loan interest rate hike - Iowa PIRG, students, and financial aid officers from local colleges speak out on the impact to students and recent graduates entering the workforce. If Congress does not find a solution by July, an estimated 255,000 students enrolled in colleges and universities across Iowa will shoulder an additional one-thousand dollards per year in school.

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Blog Post | Higher Ed

Investing in our youth, our future | Sonia Ashe

As the deadline draws near for Congress to find a solution to the immenent doubling of student loan interest rates - I am reminded of the ambitious, hard working, and dedicated students who have worked by my side this year and the challenges they face after graduation. We owe the next generation of our workforce more than this.

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Result | Safe Energy

Once Again - Protecting Consumers from the High Cost and Risk of Nuclear Power

For the second year in a row, MidAmerican Energy attempted to put ratepayers on the hook for new nuclear power plants in Iowa - with no consumer protections to limit how much we'd have to pay, and no possibility of refund if plans for the plant fell through. Thanks to the concerted effort of Iowa PIRG and coalition partners, we were able to stop this bad bill from passing once again.

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News Release | Consumer Protection, Tax

Senator Carl Levin Introductes Stop Tax Haven Abuse Act

Statement of Iowa PIRG Federal Legislative Office Director Gary Kalman on the introduction of the Stop Tax Haven Abuse Act.

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Media Hit | Safe Energy

Consumer activist, utility executives square off on Iowa nuclear plant bill

Consumer advocates and other activists squared off against electric utility executives and labor leaders today as an Iowa Senate subcommittee considered a bill that could pave the way for construction of a new nuclear power  plant by MidAmerican Energy.

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News Release | Iowa PIRG | Democracy, Tax

Iowa Earns "F" in Annual Report on Transparency of Government Spending

Iowa got an “F” when it comes to openness about government spending, according to Following the Money 2011: How the States Rank on Providing Online Access to Government Spending Data, the second annual report of its kind by the Iowa Public Interest Research Group (Iowa PIRG).

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News Release | Iowa PIRG | Consumer Protection

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on Track for July Launch

Six months after Wall Street reform legislation creating the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) was signed, a leading coalition released Halfway to the CFPB: An AFR Progress Report on “Standing Up” the New Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

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Media Hit | Health Care

House Votes to Repeal Health Reform, Branstad Completes Flip-Flop

Various groups and politicians have issued statements warning that many Americans will be hurt by repealing the health insurance reform.

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Report | Iowa PIRG Education Fund | Consumer Protection

Halfway to the CFPB

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Implementation Team staff, led by consumer champion Elizabeth Warren, are making significant progress in their efforts to build an effective agency and be ready to perform required functions by the transfer date (July 21, 2011).

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Report | Iowa PIRG Education Fund | Health Care

The Cost of Repeal: Examining the Impact on Iowa of Repealing the New Federal Health Care Law

This report examines the costs and benefits of repeal for the taxpayers, consumers, and businesses of our state.

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Report | Iowa PIRG Education Fund | Consumer Protection, Transportation

Do Roads Pay for Themselves?

Highway advocates often describe gasoline taxes as “user fees” in order to argue that those funds should be used only on highways. Yet, gasoline taxes are not user fees in any meaningful sense of the term.

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Report | Iowa PIRG Education Fund | Consumer Protection

Trouble in Toyland: The 25th Annual Survey of Toy Safety

The 2010 Trouble in Toyland report is the 25th annual Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) survey of toy safety.  In this report, U.S. PIRG provides safety guidelines for consumers when purchasing toys for small children and provides examples of toys currently on store shelves that may pose potential safety hazards.

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Tools & Resources

  • Connecting Iowa to a Prosperous Future
    Creating quality jobs, reducing traffic congestion & connecting Iowa to the rest of the Midwest, we can't let the passenger rail pass us by.
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    Act Now
  • Reclaim Democracy
    The Supreme Court's Citizens United decision ushered in an era of unprecedented spending by big money in our elections, but we're working to return our democracy back to the principle of "one person, one vote."
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    ADD YOUR VOICE
  • STOP TAX DODGERS
    Corporate tax avoidance cost taxpayers $100 billion last year. We're working to close the loopholes that allow companies to avoid paying the taxes they owe.
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    Take Action
  • BUILDING A BETTER HEALTH CARE MARKETPLACE
    Now the fight for health care reform is in Iowa.
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