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Airlines are automating more customer tasks for speed, but real people are missed

Recently on a trip to Spokane, Wash., to attend a memorial service, I was surprised to find that the counter attendants at Baggage Drop were gone at the Seattle Tacoma International Airport. Instead, Alaska Airlines has you – even senior citizens – lift your bags on to the scale. Then you insert your driver’s license below a scanner and it scans the front side, then the back side of your…

Is your attorney general taking action on fast-rising utility bills?

Recently, I wrote that U.S. utilities have requested about $18.6 billion in electric and gas rate increases during the first half of 2026. So I was pleased to see that Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown is arguing against Puget Sound Energy’s, or PSE, steep price hikes for gas and electric service. I live in Washington state in an area where PSE, an investor-owned utility, provides…

RFK Jr.’s advisory committee delivers dangerous vote on peptides, consumer groups say

An advisory committee at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, voted 8-6 with one abstention over a two-day hearing Thursday and Friday to recommend that BPC-157 peptide substances, free base and acetate, be placed on the FDA’s 503A bulks list, which would allow their compounding by some pharmacies. The vote of the Pharmacy Compounding Advisory Committee rejected the recommendation of…

FTC and state attorneys general need to take action against Speechify over voice-cloning practices, consumer groups say

Speechify, an artificial intelligence voice-cloning platform, makes it easy for bad actors to create convincing voice impersonations with no safeguards to prevent fraud, the Consumer Federation of America, or CFA, and students from UCLA Law School’s Information Policy Lab, said a draft lawsuit sent to the Federal Trade Commission, or FTC, and state attorneys general. The draft lawsuit argues…

401(k)s without alternative assets perform better than pension plans with them, study finds

401(k)s, and other defined contribution retirement plans, with no exposure to private equity or other alternative assets, have outperformed pension plans, which are defined benefit plans, with large amounts of those investments, a new report by the Americans for Financial Reform Education Fund, or AFREF, and the law firm Engstrom Lee found. The study looked at the performance of 58,000…

States where it will take the longest and shortest amounts of time to pay off credit card debt

Americans have acquired an overwhelming amount of credit card debt. In 2026, consumers are expected to increase their credit card debt by $100 billion, for a total of nearly $1.4 trillion. States are different, however, when it comes to credit card debt. “Looking at the median credit card debt in a state can give you a good idea of whether people are struggling or doing well compared to people…

Energy bills of more than 56 million utility customers across the nation could be impacted by recent record requests for higher rates by utilities

Utilities have requested about $18.6 billion in electric and gas rate increases during the first half of 2026, according to PowerLines, an advocacy group. The rate increases are occurring as summer heat pushes electricity demand higher and household energy costs remain a growing concern. In addition, Powerline’s second quarter report for 2026 finds a record $9.2 billion in rate increase…

As the Trump administration launches a barrage against endangered species across the country, conservation groups say they’ll fight

Conservation groups are notifying the Trump administration of their plans to challenge two rules weakening the Endangered Species Act, or ESA, that were finalized Tuesday. “Over the past few weeks, the Trump administration has launched a barrage against endangered species across the country,” Elizabeth Forsyth, Earthjustice senior attorney, said in a statement. “These latest attacks, which strip…

Direct-to-consumer advertising needs to be banned by the FDA, consumer group says

Direct-to-consumer, or DTC, advertising of prescription drugs should be banned by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Public Citizen, an advocacy organization, said Thursday in a petition filed with the agency. Banning DTC ads would align U.S. policy with international best practices, protect the public from misleading and harmful drug promotion, and promote rational, evidence-based…

80% of voters support the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, poll shows

A new poll shows that, across the political spectrum, likely midterm voters approve of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, or CFPB, with four in five expressing support. In addition, voters oppose President Trump’s and Congress’s attempts to eliminate this consumer watchdog agency. The poll was conducted for the Center for Responsible Lending, or CRL, and Americans for Financial…

Homeowners insurance costs much more annually for Black and Hispanic homeowners, report shows

Black and Hispanic consumers pay hundreds of dollars more on average each year in homeowners insurance premiums, according to a new report issued Tuesday by the Consumer Federation of America, or CFA, an advocacy organization. The report, which looks at homeowner insurance premiums and racial demographics in every ZIP code in the United States, found evidence of a substantial racial premium…

The best and worse cities for first-time home buyers in 2026

Buying a home for the first time is an important milestone for many Americans, but achieving it is getting more difficult as prices and interest rates continue to rise. Last year, first-time buyers made up 21 percent of the market, compared to the historical average of 40 percent. People who are able to invest in a house this year need to balance what they want and need with what they can…

The latest on the iceberg lettuce recall and what you need to know about Cyclospora

On July 17, Taylor Farms de Mexico of Guanajuato, Mexico, announced that they’re voluntarily removing all iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico from the U.S. market, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, said in a statement. What’s included in the recall Taylor Fresh Foods’ recall notice included Marketside-brand product available at Walmart: 12-oz and 24-oz Iceberg Salad with…

Don’t eat shredded iceberg lettuce from Mexico served at Taco Bell locations in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and West Virginia, health officials say

Cyclosporiasis disease as a foodborne parasitic illness caused by Cyclospora cayetanensis as an outbreak with contaminated food or water resulting in explosive diarrhea and digestive illness. Stomach Pains or stomachache with a painful digestive system ache. A multistate outbreak of Cyclospora illnesses linked to shredded iceberg lettuce served at Taco Bell locations in Indiana, Kentucky,…

23andMe agrees to pay $18 million for genetic data breach

Forty-two states will receive $18 million from the bankruptcy funds of 23andMe under a settlement with a coalition of attorneys general announced Tuesday to resolve charges from a 2023 data breach that compromised the genetic data of its customers. “23andMe presented itself as a safe steward of Washingtonians’ most sensitive personal data and then failed to ensure protection against hackers,”…

States settle with Cash App for $45 million over deceptive practices

Block, the company behind the peer-to-peer payments app Cash App, has resolved allegations the company misled consumers about Cash App’s safety. It failed to protect users from fraud, and didn’t meet its own promises to consumers and obligations under the law, according a multistate coalition of attorneys general. “CashApp knew peer-to-peer payment apps were prime targets for fraudsters, and…

Only a few days left to finish pruning your rhododendrons

Near the end of June, I wrote about getting rhododendrons pruned before it gets too hot. My experience has been that if you prune them in July, they sometimes sort of look droopy or wilted. Later, I found a recommendation that you get rhododendrons pruned by July Fourth. That gave me a few more days. Then, I saw another recommendation to finish your pruning by mid-July. That’s coming up…

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