Propositions on the June 8 ballot
by Linda Williams, The Willits News
Opponents believe Proposition 17 will allow insurance companies to raise premiums on drivers who, for virtually any reason, did not have insurance coverage at some point in the past five years and will make insurance more expensive overall. Read More ›
Battleground California
by Carl Pope, Executive Director of the Sierra Club, Huffington Post
The Consumer Federation of California calls it (Prop 16) an anti-democratic power grab, but the utility has already spend $35 million and appears poised to spend at least another $30 million to lock in its monopoly and force Californians to pay more for dirtier power if the utility wants them to. Read More ›
San Diego Chamber of Commerce Opposes Prop 16
by San Diego Chamber of Commerce, East County Magazine
Politics makes strange bedfellows’and in the case of Proposition 16, almost nobody is being swayed by Pacific Gas & Electric’s efforts to woo voters. Read More ›
The Butler Didn’t Do It
by Robert Elisberg, Huffington Post
…it is the big oil, drug and insurance groups who have the most to gain by smearing someone backed by environmentalists, medical attorneys and consumer protection groups and defeating Betsy Butler. Read More ›
Proposition 16 changes rules on public power
by David R. Baker, San Francisco Chronicle
The ballot measure, funded to the tune of $35 million almost entirely by Pacific Gas and Electric Co., would force local governments to win the approval of two-thirds of their voters before jumping into the electricity business. Read More ›
Voters to make choices on five state propositions
by E.J. Schultz, Fresno Bee
From making a major change to the state’s election system to tweaking a property tax law, voters will face proposition decisions big and small on the June 8 primary ballot. The number of measures — five — is about average for a primary election when turnout is usually lower. Read More ›
Follow the Money – No on Prop 16
by Richard Holober, Executive Director, Consumer Federation of California , California Progress Report
Prop 16 is a laboratory example of how the ballot initiative has been twisted from its initial purpose of serving citizen democracy into yet another weapon in the arsenal of an arrogant special interest. Our votes should speak louder than PG&E’s millions. This June, send Prop 16 packing. Read More ›
CFC’s Zack Kaldveer is Interviewed By Norman Solomon on the Progressive Radio Network
by Norman Solomon, Progressive Radio Network
Listen to CFC’s Zack Kaldveer interviewed on the Progressive Radio Network by Norman Solomon, a nationally syndicated columnist on media and politics. Topics include consumer rights issues, the corrosive influence of corporate money in politics and how it subverts the public interest, the costs of war, and more. Read More ›
Prop. 15, state’s Fair Elections Act, gets money out of politics
Voter approval of Proposition 15 will demonstrate effective public campaign financing in California, and lobbyist registration fees are an appropriate funding source for ensuring a level playing field in elections. Read More ›
CFC Rebuttal to OC Register: Vote Yes on Prop. 15
by Richard Holober, CFC Executive Director, Orange County Register
The Consumer Federation of California witnesses first hand how this “pay to play” system undermines the public interest, as one proposed consumer protection law after another is crushed under a ton of corporate special-interest donations. Read More ›
Who would Prop. 17 car insurance initiative benefit?
by Carol J. Williams, Los Angeles Times
Opponents also contend that the initiative would make rates unaffordable for many new drivers and those with tarnished records, boosting the number of uninsured cars on the road and thereby raising safety risks and eventually premiums for everyone. Read More ›
California Needs The FCC To Restore The Fairness Doctrine
by Richard Holober, Consumer Federation of California and Roy Ulrich, California Tax Reform Association, Huffington Post
…the effect of broadcasters’ refusal to provide under-funded campaigns free response time since the repeal of the Fairness Doctrine for ballot measures…has been to increase the amount of one-sided information voters receive before entering the voting booth. Read More ›
Yes on Proposition 15: Elections Should be Won, Not Bought
by Anjuli Kronheim, Common Cause, The South Los Angeles Report
Prop 15 pays for itself, primarily through registration fees on lobbyists, lobbying firms, and lobbyist employers. No taxpayer dollars are used for Prop 15, despite its oppositions’ misleading claims to the contrary. Currently lobbyists only pay $12.50 per year in California, one of the lowest rates in the country. Read More ›