chuckbell

Consumer, environmental, economic and social justice advocate. Day job is Programs Director at Consumer Reports. My tweets are my own.

[NCLC @NCLC4consumers]

While HEI loans are marketed as a flexible option for underserved homeowners, NCLC's Alys Cohen warns in
@FLHatNewAmerica's Rooftop blog that these products transfer wealth from homeowners to institutional investors & can cause financial ruin. #FairHousing https://t.co/zgPBsWTJQe

[NCLC @NCLC4consumers]

“[The CFPB have] rebalanced the odds between big banks and regular people,” @AdamRust9 @ConsumerFed said. “But industry doesn’t like the mission, and Russell Vought has implemented their wishes to undermine it.” #ProtectConsumers @guardian https://t.co/cMYFv0YLt0

[Lindsay Owens @owenslindsay1]

New York’s One Fair Pricing package, which would ban surveillance pricing, is in the home stretch. It’s wildly popular with New Yorkers. So it’s no surprise that Big Tech, big banks, and major retailers have launched a no-holds-barred lobbying blitz to squash it. Here's why: 🧵

[National Consumers League @ncl_tweets]

The CLARITY Act is being sold as a framework for crypto markets. But it leaves consumers exposed to fraud, ignores conflicts of interest involving public officials profiting from crypto, and creates loopholes that could destabilize community banks. NCL and coalition partners are calling on the Senate to oppose it. Read our letter: https://t.co/6pp8nYdKNF #Crypto #ConsumerProtection

[Consumer Federation of America @ConsumerFed]

Why does everything feel like a ripoff? From #Scams and #JunkFees to dark patterns and deceptive practices, our CFA experts explores how consumer manipulation drives up costs and erodes trust. Join as they unpack the growing #ScamEconomy
#ConsumerAssembly

[Zephyr Teachout @ZephyrTeachout]

Let me get a little technical here on the New York bill on Surveillance Pricing. It's a good bill, from @EmeritaTorresNY.

But what makes it a good bill is that people who are harmed by, say, being charged more for diapers because their data profile says they are in a rush, can sue.

Without that, all the harms would fall on the New York Attorney General to bring cases. And the NYAG ALREADY HAS authority to sue under the states unfair, deceptive, abusive pricing laws. I worked in that office, and its great, but it doesn't have anywhere near the resources we need to hold big tech accountable.

The key to making the law real is that people who are harmed who can sue. That's called the "Private Right of Action." Insist on it.

I promise you, it is THE thing the Chamber of Commerce is trying to pry out of there as we speak. They don't mind symbolic laws being passed, they mind laws that could actually be enforced being passed.

[chuckbell @chuckbell]

The Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (PRRIA) is a great bill for consumers, to get toxics out of the wastestream and require manufacturers to bear their fair share of costs. We need an Assembly floor vote now!!

[Beyond Plastics @PlasticsBeyond]

"Extended Producer Responsibility is a proven approach – implemented already in California, Colorado, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Oregon and Washington – that leads to less unnecessary packaging, higher resource recovery, lower greenhouse gas emissions and cost savings for municipalities.

We have successfully implemented similar laws for paint, batteries and other electronics. This year, we have an opportunity to enact this for packaging.

[W]e call on our lawmakers in Albany to take action before this session ends and pass a bill that will slash pollution by significantly reducing the 24 million pounds of material New York City’s sanitation workers collect daily."
-Gregory Anderson, commissioner of the New York City Department of Sanitation, for City & State

[Samuel Levine @saalevine]

Don’t let shady home improvement contractors wreck your home and your finances. Before you shop, check out DCWP’s Wall of Shame.

[National Consumers League @ncl_tweets]

🎉This is a historic win for DC residents, and we could not be more proud to stand with @TzedekDC. The DC Council unanimously passed the Medical Debt Mitigation Amendment Act — banning medical debt from credit reports, capping interest rates, and requiring hospitals to screen patients for financial assistance before pursuing collections. It now heads to the Mayor for signature. 90,000 District residents carry medical debt. This is the change they deserve. https://t.co/1Y2NbcDx1F #MedicalDebt #ConsumerProtection

[NCLC @NCLC4consumers]

“With Congress & the Trump Administration reversing protection against abusive & unfair bank practices that multiply overdraft fees, some banks are seizing the opportunity to turn struggling families into a profit center." @lsaundersnclc #ProtectConsumers https://t.co/KCimLumjxn

[Consumer Federation of America @ConsumerFed]

“This is an age of un - #affordability that is being driven by a lack of #accountability”

- @MDComptroller

[Consumer Federation of America @ConsumerFed]

Hear @RepCasar & CFA’s @SusanKWeinstock discuss #JetBlue & #SurveillancePricing

“If a company doesn’t want to do surveillance pricing, then they should certainly support a ban on surveillance pricing”

[New Jersey Citizen Action @NJCitizenAction]

Good news for first-time home buyers! New Jersey Community Capital has launched 'Keys to Home New Jersey', a free online resource designed to guide first-time homebuyers through every step of the homeownership journey. NJ Citizen Action Education Fund is proud to partner in this effort to make homeownership more accessible for New Jersey families.

https://t.co/3KTbRyoMog

[National Consumers League @ncl_tweets]

John Oliver just exposed companies pressuring injury victims to sell their structured settlements for pennies on the dollar. These are guaranteed lifetime payments designed to cover medical care and living expenses after an injury. NCL CEO Sally Greenberg sat down with @NSSTADC to break down what is happening and what needs to change. 

Watch now. https://t.co/bOgM8crMsj  #StructuredSettlements #ConsumerProtection

[Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani @NYCMayor]

Today, I signed an Executive Order temporarily repealing bedtimes in the City of New York so that kids of all ages can watch our team in the NBA Finals.

As Mayor, you’re forced to make many difficult decisions. This was not one of them.

Go Knicks.

[Doreen Harris @Doreen_M_Harris]

Today I spoke at the @USCleanPower Summit to discuss how the region’s evolving energy mix, infrastructure needs, market pressures, and policy pathways are shaping the future of a reliable, affordable, and lower-emission power supply for NY.

[NCLC @NCLC4consumers]

Through supervision and enforcement, the CFPB has curbed abusive fee-gouging in many markets, from auto loan servicing to school lunch payments. Advocates convened this week in DC to tell Congress to let the CFPB do its job to #ProtectConsumers. #CAD2026

[Doreen Harris @Doreen_M_Harris]

@GovKathyHochul and @NewYorkStateAG are leading a coalition of six other attorneys general in suing the Trump administration over its unlawful cancellation of a major offshore wind lease off the coast of New York. https://t.co/AV2peUPG3u

[NCLC @NCLC4consumers]

𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝𝐧'𝐭 𝐩𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐝, but payday loan apps force workers to pay interest disguised as expedited fees, donations, and subscription charges. We're in DC for Consumer Advocacy Day to urge Congress to put a stop to it. #CAD2026 #ProtectConsumers

[Mike Pierce @millennial_debt]

[BREAKING] Bombshell @Bloomberg report shows @Toyota’s *unregistered* MAGA lobbyist won a corporate pardon from Trump officials, who weighed in directly to unwind a CFPB settlement w/ the carmaker.

This back room deal shows how power works in Trump’s DC.

https://t.co/YbMPojBak3