Home

What's New

News Release | Maryland PIRG Foundation

Maryland PIRG Foundation’s national affiliates file groundbreaking greenwashing lawsuit against Washington Gas in DC

Baltimore  – U.S. PIRG Education Fund, Environment America Research & Policy Center – which are national affiliates of Maryland PIRG Foundation  — and ClientEarth filed a lawsuit against Washington Gas in District of Columbia Superior Court on Thursday over misleading customers on the environmental impacts of natural gas, which is mostly made up of methane.

> Keep Reading
News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund

Statement: Congress passes Reese’s Law

Manufacturers will need to ensure that the battery compartments that use button or coin batteries are not easily accessible by children age 6 and younger.

> Keep Reading
Blog Post | Consumer Tips

Why you can now have faith in good faith estimates | Patricia Kelmar

Here are the steps to getting a written good faith estimate before receiving scheduled medical care. 

> Keep Reading
Blog Post

Smart Money, Smart Kids: Tips for teaching financial literacy and privacy protection to kids of all ages | Teresa Murray

There are lessons for pre-schoolers, pre-teens, high schoolers and certainly, young adults going off to college or moving out.

> Keep Reading
Blog Post

Protecting your digital privacy: tips for safeguarding your information | R.J. Cross

Smartphones and the Internet are incredible tools - but they come at a cost. Your data is often collected, sold and shared with a huge number of third party companies, often without you realizing it. Here's how to limit what data is collected on you and how it's used. 

> Keep Reading

Pages

News Release | Maryland PIRG Foundation

Maryland PIRG Foundation’s national affiliates file groundbreaking greenwashing lawsuit against Washington Gas in DC

Baltimore  – U.S. PIRG Education Fund, Environment America Research & Policy Center – which are national affiliates of Maryland PIRG Foundation  — and ClientEarth filed a lawsuit against Washington Gas in District of Columbia Superior Court on Thursday over misleading customers on the environmental impacts of natural gas, which is mostly made up of methane.

> Keep Reading
News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund

Statement: Congress passes Reese’s Law

Manufacturers will need to ensure that the battery compartments that use button or coin batteries are not easily accessible by children age 6 and younger.

> Keep Reading
News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund & NRDC

Advocacy groups, 48,000 petitioners demand Columbia Sportswear stop using toxic PFAS chemicals in clothing

U.S. PIRG Education Fund and NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) hosted a media conference outside Columbia Sportswear’s flagship store in downtown Portland on Thursday to deliver a petition, with more than 48,000 signatures, urging the clothing manufacturer and retailer to phase out the use of PFAS chemicals in their products.

> Keep Reading
News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund | Consumer Tips

STATEMENT: Flyers embarking on holiday travel should know their rights

As travelers try to navigate air travel this holiday weekend and in the weeks ahead, they should know their rights to a refund under federal law, and understand airlines’ policies on credits and vouchers, which flyers don’t have to accept when the airline cancels the flight.

> Keep Reading
News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund

Release: New policy in effect erasing paid medical debt from credit reports

Consumer tips on how to check your credit report accuracy

> Keep Reading

Pages

Result | Public Health

Victory: Macy's commits to phase out toxic flame retardents

We did it: Macy's announced it will stop selling furniture that contains toxic flame retardants.

> Keep Reading
Result | Public Health

Victory: Subway Announces Plan to Go Antibiotic Free

We're ecstatic that Subway will be living up to the healthy image they've created. They have more restaurants in the U.S. than any other chain, and their announcement will put major market pressure on the meat producers to stop overusing antibiotics.

> Keep Reading
Result | Safe Energy

Commission Renews and Expands Commitment to EmPOWER Maryland

The Maryland Public Service Commission has ordered a series of measures that will expand and refocus—and ultimately improve—programs designed to meet the goals of the EmPOWER Maryland Energy Efficiency Act of 2008.

> Keep Reading
Report | Maryland PIRG Foundation, Frontier Group, Environment Maryland Research and Policy Center | Safe Energy

Methane Gas Leaks

Methane gas (often known as natural gas) has heated the homes of many Americans for over a century — and for over a century, it has been prone to leaks, putting communities and the environment in danger. With growing awareness of the impact of methane leaks on the climate, and with growing availability of safer alternatives, it is clear that gas has no place in a modern clean energy network.

> Keep Reading
Report | U.S. PIRG Education Fund

Stranded

When you rely on a powered wheelchair to get around, any delay in repair imposes a burden on your mobility and financial security. It can even become a matter of life and death. Yet, as “Stranded,” a new report from U.S. PIRG Education Fund found, a constrained market for wheelchair service and repair in the U.S. makes delays, of weeks or even months, common. 

> Keep Reading
Report | U.S. PIRG Education Fund, NRDC and Fashion FWD

Going Out of Fashion

PFAS use in apparel and other consumer products is coming under increased scrutiny from lawmakers. However, apparel manufacturers and retail stores don’t need to wait for the law to catch up to the proliferation of toxic PFAS. They can get out in front of the regulatory curve and protect their customers and the planet from PFAS pollution by immediately adopting policies to end the use of PFAS in clothing, footwear, and accessories. Indeed, some already have. 

> Keep Reading
Report | U.S. PIRG Education Fund | Consumer Tips

Dark Patterns: A step-by-step guide to protect your privacy on your phone

Apps and social media are a part of everyday life. They help us stay connected to the world around us. But it can be easy to overlook the risk involved with making personal information accessible online, especially when that information can be recorded, bought and sold by the companies running the apps.

> Keep Reading
Report | Maryland PIRG Foundation | Consumer Protection

Why Farmers Need Right to Repair

Modern farm equipment, like so many other products in our lives, runs on software. While the new technology has helped farmers increase productivity, it has also allowed manufacturers to lock down the repair process.

> Keep Reading

Pages

Blog Post | Consumer Tips

Why you can now have faith in good faith estimates | Patricia Kelmar

Here are the steps to getting a written good faith estimate before receiving scheduled medical care. 

> Keep Reading
Blog Post

Smart Money, Smart Kids: Tips for teaching financial literacy and privacy protection to kids of all ages | Teresa Murray

There are lessons for pre-schoolers, pre-teens, high schoolers and certainly, young adults going off to college or moving out.

> Keep Reading
Blog Post

Protecting your digital privacy: tips for safeguarding your information | R.J. Cross

Smartphones and the Internet are incredible tools - but they come at a cost. Your data is often collected, sold and shared with a huge number of third party companies, often without you realizing it. Here's how to limit what data is collected on you and how it's used. 

> Keep Reading
Blog Post

UPDATE: High cost of groceries isn’t just due to inflation, it could also be due to food waste | Danielle Melgar

> Keep Reading
Blog Post

18 tips to reduce robocalls and protect yourself from scams | Teresa Murray

Illegal robocalls seem to be declining a smidgeon as more phone companies install federally mandated technology to block spoofed calls and detect other scam calls. Here are some tips to live by and share with vulnerable friends or relatives.

> Keep Reading

Pages

Blog Post

Smart Money, Smart Kids: Tips for teaching financial literacy and privacy protection to kids of all ages

There are lessons for pre-schoolers, pre-teens, high schoolers and certainly, young adults going off to college or moving out.

News Release | Maryland PIRG Foundation

Maryland PIRG Foundation’s national affiliates file groundbreaking greenwashing lawsuit against Washington Gas in DC

Baltimore  – U.S. PIRG Education Fund, Environment America Research & Policy Center – which are national affiliates of Maryland PIRG Foundation  — and ClientEarth filed a lawsuit against Washington Gas in District of Columbia Superior Court on Thursday over misleading customers on the environmental impacts of natural gas, which is mostly made up of methane.

News Release | U.S. PIRG Education Fund

Statement: Congress passes Reese’s Law

Manufacturers will need to ensure that the battery compartments that use button or coin batteries are not easily accessible by children age 6 and younger.

Blog Post

Why you can now have faith in good faith estimates

Here are the steps to getting a written good faith estimate before receiving scheduled medical care. 

Blog Post

Protecting your digital privacy: tips for safeguarding your information

Smartphones and the Internet are incredible tools - but they come at a cost. Your data is often collected, sold and shared with a huge number of third party companies, often without you realizing it. Here's how to limit what data is collected on you and how it's used. 

Solid Waste

PIRG hosts webinar with MythBusters' Adam Savage on Right to Repair

Our national network and the Right to Repair team organized a summit featuring keynote speaker Adam Savage from MythBusters. He shared his thoughts with us on the movement and we discussed our current progress on the Right to Repair campaign.

 
  • WHO'S FUNDING OUR ELECTIONS?
    In Maryland’s gubernatorial elections, the people and companies that donate to campaigns are not reflective of the Marylanders who vote.
    LEARN MORE
  • REPORT: The Threat of "Forever Chemicals"
    How PFAS put Marylanders' health at risk, and what we can do about it
    READ THE REPORT
  • THE FIX IS IN
    Our survey shows that independent shops are struggling to access parts, service information and repair software which is necessary to fix phones — which manufacturers won’t let these independent shops have.
    OUR REPORT
  • SUPERFUND UNDERFUNDED
    One in six Americans lives within three miles of a toxic waste site so dangerous that it is eligible for cleanup under the “Superfund” program, but there’s not enough money to pay for it.
    OUR REPORT

Support us

Your tax-deductible donation supports Maryland PIRG Foundation's work to educate consumers on the issues that matter, especially when powerful interests are blocking progress.

Donate Today

Learn More

You can also support Maryland PIRG Foundation’s work through bequests, contributions from life insurance or retirement plans, securities contributions and vehicle donations. 

Find out more



Maryland PIRG Foundation is part of The Public Interest Network, which operates and supports organizations committed to a shared vision of a better world and a strategic approach to social change.