CONSUMER EDUCATION FOUNDATION
4182 BECK AVE, STUDIO CITY, CA 91604 wheresourmoney.org

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Organizations Filed Purposes: To engage in social welfare activities within the meaning of Section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or the corresponding provisions of any future United States internal revenue law (the Code), and within the meaning of Section 23701f of the California Revenue and Taxation Code, that promote the interests of consumers on the following issues: insurance, property loss mitigation, property loss prevention, conversion of mutual insurance companies to stock companies, and consumer education, generally.

See Part III Line 1.

Consumer Legislation Project: In 2019, CEF continued and expanded its investigation of the problems that American consumers face in the modern commercial marketplace. The organization also weighed in to correct misrepresentations about U.S. consumer protection laws made by American and European business lobbying groups as the European Union considered legislative proposals to expand consumer protections.An exhaustive report examining the current state of consumer protection law in the United States and recommending reforms is presently projected to publish in Q3 of 2020. It will examine the vast changes in the marketplace that have occurred in the decades since consumer protection laws were last comprehensively updated in the United States. These changes include the advent of the Internet, the prevalence of sophisticated technology in consumer products and services, and the dramatic shift to electronic and mobile commerce. The report comprehensively outlines the specific types of corporate abuses that are currently victimizing consumers as a result of these changes.The report will assess the extent to which state and federal laws and legal remedies, particularly as interpreted and applied by the courts, have failed to keep up with these developments. And it will analyze the current procedural mechanisms by which consumer rights may be vindicated, such as class actions, and propose changes to enhance the practical rights of consumers to jointly litigate against corporate wrongdoers, and to restore public confidence in the system of justice. The report will be accompanied by an equally detailed proposed Model Law, which would enact and explain the basis for the suggested reforms. In preparation for its publication, CEF created a new website, RepresentConsumers.org, and established the project on the Internet as #REPRESENT.As part of the research for the report and model legislation, CEF uncovered the growing misuse of Americans personal data by numerous tech firms that are mostly unknown to consumers. These firms collect and process the data, using secret algorithms, to create surveillance scores that determine whether a person gets a job or an apartment, is able to obtain customer service, the price they pay for goods and services and even whether they are allowed to buy or return an item. In an exhaustive petition submitted to the Federal Trade Commission in June 24, 2019, #REPRESENT asked the Commission to investigate and take action against discriminatory surveillance scores. The petition received widespread media attention, including coverage by the New York Times, Gizmodo, Mercury News, The Hill, and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.Unlike consumers in the United States, consumers in the European Union have no class action system to help them resolve disputes over products and services that harm many people. In 2018, #Represent submitted extensive comments to the European Commission the executive branch of the European Union as part of the EUs consideration of legislation to enact class action laws in member states. In 2019, #REPRESENT published two commentaries on this topic, which appeared in the Financial Times and Law360.

Online Empowerment: Grant to Consumer Watchdog.The CEF provides ongoing support for the work of Consumer Watchdog, a California-based non-profit charitable organization, to develop new models of public participation that encourage Americans to become more directly and deeply involved in public processes and democratic institutions. The organization has continuously developed and expanded a model online citizen participation program that during 2019 engaged in recruitment, training, legislative advocacy, grassroots campaigning, and public education. Consumer Watchdog reported the following activities funded by the CEF grant:A. Educating and activating civic participation online. Consumer Watchdog has developed its ConsumerWatchdog.org web portal into a nationally-recognized site for online educational and e-advocacy activities related to pocketbook consumer issues. The Consumer Watchdog website and its associated content is viewed by users throughout the United States who read reports, blog posts, news releases and other informational articles; submitted complaints about a variety of issues and corporate practices; and utilized the sites online action tools to voice their opinion about key consumer issues. Through its online activities, the project educates the public about corporate and political accountability efforts and provides tools for citizens to get involved in important public debates concerning corporate and political reform issues. In 2019, Consumer Watchdog focused on educating Californians on the states new privacy law, the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), and encouraging public support for its proper implementation by state government. The organization also publicized efforts by the tech industry to undermine the CCPA through amendments in the Legislature. Consumer Watchdog continued its advocacy of e-democracy by researching and publishing a report on digital signature gathering to qualify initiative measures for the California ballot. And Consumer Watchdog exposed how unregulated automotive technologies create grave safety risks to motorists on public roads.B. Capitol Watchdog Consumer Watchdogs Capital Watchdog project issued a groundbreaking report on mismanagement at the California state agency responsible for recycling. The March 2019 report revealed that the states bottle recycling system has collapsed, denying consumers the required reimbursements; it also exposed failures at the state agency responsible for administering the program, and highlighted the financing crisis threatening to eliminate consumer access to bottle returns. Consumer Watchdog also continued its scrutiny of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, uncovering a scandal concerning the settlement of lawsuits challenging DWP billing errors that resulted in FBI raids of city government agencies. C. Enhancing Digital Privacy. Consumer Watchdog focused on using its online tools to discuss the burgeoning issue area of online privacy and the increasing commercial use of personal data. Consumer Watchdog informed the public about their new rights under, and advocated for strong enforcement of, the CCPA, a statewide online privacy law that creates statutory penalties for data breaches and gives consumers the right to control their private information, as well as to learn what information companies collect about them. That advocacy included exposing the financial influence of the powerful tech lobby in Sacramento in order to block more than a dozen legislative attacks on consumers new privacy protections.D. Autonomous Vehicles. Consumer Watchdog has been a leading critic of the testing and deployment of driverless vehicles without proper regulation of the vehicles safety, security and privacy protections. During 2019, the organization continued its scrutiny of testing of driverless vehicles on American roads, and of the state and federal agencies responsible for overseeing the testing and deployment of driverless cars and trucks.In July 2019, Consumer Watchdog reported the results of an investigation into the security of connected cars. The unprecedented report, which gained national attention, warned that most vehicles on the road in the United States are critically vulnerable to hacking, which could lead to a catastrophe greater than 9/11.Grantee: Consumer WatchdogAmount: $200,000 Address: 6330 San Vicente Blvd., Suite 250, Los Angeles, CA 90048Contact: Carmen Balber, Executive Director.

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