With cases on the rise, Congress should pass the Medical Supply Transparency and Delivery Act, which would establish a system for distributing critical medical supplies to impacted areas.
With cases on the rise, Congress should pass the Medical Supply Transparency and Delivery Act, which would establish a system for distributing critical medical supplies to impacted areas.
Public Health
Responding to the COVID crisis
In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, now more than ever, we need to work together to ensure that our government has a coordinated, strategic response to safeguard the public’s health, protect consumers from emerging dangers and ensure people can still participate fully in our democracy.
Consumer Protection
Illinois PIRG sues Clearview AI over privacy violations of millions of Illinoisans
Illinois PIRG has joined the ACLU in a lawsuit accusing the facial recognition startup Clearview AI of violating the privacy rights of millions of Illinois residents. In January, the New York Times reported that Clearview AI had collected more than 3 billion photos from the internet without the knowledge or consent of those pictured.
Transportation
House transportation bill prioritizes fixing infrastructure, sustainable investment
Federal lawmakers have put forward the INVEST in America Act — a nearly $500 billion transportation spending bill which prioritizes repairing existing infrastructure over new highway projects, and contains key provisions for more sustainable investments.
COVID-19
Illinois PIRG backs governor's plan to prioritize public health in reopening Illinois
Governor J.B. Pritzker has released a five-phase "Restore Illinois" plan to safely and gradually reopen parts of Illinois' economy, following expert public health recommendations in the process. Illinois PIRG supports the plan, and we're continuing to call on the federal government to expand testing and production of protective equipment.
We can't do it without you.
Illinois PIRG is your advocate for the public interest, speaking out for healthier, safer, more secure lives for all of us.
News & Research
News Release | Illinois PIRG
With America as a whole continuing to struggle in containing the COVID-19 virus, Illinois PIRG and Open Safe Illinois released a new fact sheet today calling on Illinois to maintain all current restrictions related to COVID-19, and consider additional measures to improve containment.
Report | Illinois PIRG
COVID Exit Strategy, a nonpartisan group of public health and crisis experts, has been tracking the progress states have made towards meeting the CDC recommended benchmarks states should reach before reopening their economies. On Monday, June 29th, only three states were meeting these metrics, earning a “Green” rating – down from six a week earlier. Currently, Illinois is meeting half of the benchmarks, and is rated “Red” by COVID Exit Strategy due to a 2-week trend of rising case numbers, a metric the group gives particular weight.
Blog Post
On Monday, the U.S. House approved H.R. 5332, the Protecting Your Credit Score Act of 2020 (Gottheimer-NJ). U.S. PIRG joined other leading advocates of credit reporting reform in a support letter to the House last week. The bill takes a number of steps to make it easier to fix credit reporting errors.
News Release | Illinois PIRG
A new coalition of health, labor, aging and public interest organizations launched “Open Safe Illinois” on Thursday to amplify the voices of Illinois residents, the majority of whom support public health-driven decision making by Gov. J.B. Pritzker, the Illinois Department of Public Health, and local leaders.
Blog Post
As of today, consumer complaints to the CFPB set a third straight monthly record in May, with 35,093 complaints reported. Complaints about credit reporting lead by far, followed by debt collection, credit card and mortgage complaints. Job and income losses during the pandemic are hitting families hard.
RESOURCE
Coronavirus update
In the midst of the coronavirus outbreak, we’ve taken steps for all of our staff to work remotely for safety reasons. But rest assured, we’ll keep advocating for you as we work for a healthier, safer world.
Learn more about how we can work together to address the COVID-19 pandemic.