Menu

Close

Protecting Democracy [1]

American democracy is in jeopardy, from the disastrous Citizens United ruling that flooded our politics with corporate cash to the immoral assault on voting rights. We work every day to defend against these threats and advance bold reforms.

Tell Congress: Pass the Protecting Our Democracy Act

Add Your Name

Generative Artificial Intelligence and Threats to Democracy

Protecting Elected Officials from Threats
Making Government Work [2]

The U.S. government should work for the public, not corporations or industry. It should safeguard consumers, workers and the environment, and be funded well enough to do so. The budget process must not be obstructed by partisanship.

Get Corporate Money Out of Politics

Sign the Petition

It’s Time to Cut the Bloated Pentagon Budget to Fund People, Not Military Contractors

Ensuring Public Money Does Not Go To Private Equity
Consumer & Worker Safeguards [3]

Every day, Big Banks, Big Polluters, and Big Tech companies are threatening our economy, our environment, and our democracy – sacrificing Main Street Americans and our families on the altar of corporate profits. Public Citizen advocates for ordinary people by taking on corporate interests and their cronies in government.

Don’t Let Big Tech Write Our Digital Privacy Laws

Sign Now

Public Citizen Calls on Presidential Candidates, Parties to Pledge Not to Use Dangerous, Manipulative Deepfakes

Within Reach: Banker Pay Reform
Safe & Affordable Drugs & Devices [4]

Prescription drugs are unaffordable and new drugs and devices often are approved without being proven safe and effective. Public Citizen challenges Big Pharma, device manufacturers and federal regulators to make drugs and medical devices safe, effective and accessible to all.

Tell President Biden: Make Meds Affordable

SEND AN EMAIL
Health Care [5]

Health care in the U.S. leaves too many people out, costs too much and doesn’t meet acceptable standards of quality. Much of the care that we get is unaffordable, unnecessary or harmful. Public Citizen advocates Medicare for All, stronger oversight of dangerous doctors and safe clinical trials.

Win Medicare for All

Take Action Now

Report: Ranking of the Rate of State Medical Boards’ Serious Disciplinary Actions, 2021-2023

Report: Thirty-One Years of Pharmaceutical Industry Criminal and Civil Penalties: 1991-2021
Globalization & Trade [6]

Global Trade Watch’s mission is to ensure that in this era of globalization, a majority have the opportunity to enjoy economic security, a healthy environment, safe food, medicines and products, access to quality affordable services such as health care and the exercise of democratic decision-making about the matters that affect our lives.

Global Trade Watch has led the fight against corporate-rigged “trade” agreements that provide special powers for Big Pharma to raise medicine prices, promote the outsourcing of jobs to low-wage countries and undermine the food safety and other safeguards on which our families rely.

For decades, we have fought for progressive alternatives that benefit people and the planet. Learn more about our work.

Join the Trade Justice Movement

JOIN NOW
Climate & Energy [7]

The climate crisis is the challenge of our time. We can fix it with solutions that will make us healthier and more economically secure. We must act quickly to make our economy run on renewable power — and ensure that disadvantaged families and displaced workers share equitably in the new economy. We also must fight the corrupting power of fossil fuel companies and ensure that energy regulators are effective and publicly accountable.

Tell Toyota: Go all-in on EVs

Add Your Name

Climate Roadmap for U.S. Financial Regulation

Toyota’s Troubling Electric Vehicle Track Record
Justice & the Courts [8]

Litigation can remedy or deter wrongdoing, impact policy and meaningfully slow abuses of power. Whether suing on behalf of our members to ensure the honest functioning of government, or representing individual consumers seeking redress in court, our litigation draws on our expertise in administrative law, constitutional law, and government transparency.

Subscribe to the Supreme Court Conference Preview

Sign Up

Share

July 21, 2005 Press Conference

Share

Safety should be standard, not a luxury!

July 21, 2005

Public Citizen, along with a broad coalition including crash survivors and auto safety advocacy, insurance and medical groups, today held a press conference to call for inclusion of critical auto safety provisions in the House-Senate Highway Funding Bill (H.R. 3).

Members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives are in the final days of deciding whether to include critically important vehicle safety improvements in the highway transportation bill, H.R. 3. The Senate’s version of the bill includes a number of auto safety improvements, which would set standards to make vehicle roofs stronger, prevent vehicle rollovers, avoid occupant ejections and make vehicles safer for children, among a number of other improvements. Unfortunately, the House did not approve a similar bill.

These standards are necessary. The U.S. Department of Transportation projects there were 42,800 highway deaths in 2004, an increase over 2003 fatalities. In addition, there were almost 3 million injuries in crashes during 2004. These deaths and injuries cost the country not just in lives lost, but in dollar figures – the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that highway crashes cost society $230.6 billion a year.

The Senate’s version of H.R. 3 would help make critical vehicle safety features standard for all consumers – not merely those who can afford expensive add-ons to their luxury vehicles.

Click on the links below to read the written statements from the press conference:

Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV):

https://www.citizen.org/sites/default/files/rockefeller.pdf

Joan Claybrook, president of Public Citizen:

https://www.citizen.org/pressroom/release.cfm?ID=1994

Judie Stone, president of Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety:

https://www.citizen.org/sites/default/files/judithstone.pdf

Howard Champion, MD, president of the Coalition for American Trauma Care:

https://www.citizen.org/sites/default/files/traumafoundation.pdf

Alan Maness, Associate General Counsel for State Farm Insurance Companies:

https://www.citizen.org/sites/default/files/statefarm.pdf

Sally Greenberg, Senior Product Safety Counsel for Consumers Union:

https://www.citizen.org/sites/default/files/greenberg.pdf

Survivor Advocates:

Rachel Clemens:

https://www.citizen.org/sites/default/files/clemens.pdf

Syndi Ecker:

https://www.citizen.org/sites/default/files/ecker.pdf

Julie Peck:

https://www.citizen.org/sites/default/files/peck.pdf

Jim Portell:

https://www.citizen.org/sites/default/files/portell.pdf

Click on the links below to read Public Citizen’s press releases from the press conference:

https://www.citizen.org/pressroom/release.cfm?ID=1994

https://www.citizen.org/pressroom/release.cfm?ID=1993

Click on the links below for background information on the highway funding bill:

State-by-state rollover fatality statistics:

https://www.citizen.org/sites/default/files/staterolloverstats.pdf

Safety highlights in Title VII, Senate-passed bill:

https://www.citizen.org/sites/default/files/safetyhighlights.pdf

Latest NHTSA timelines shorter than SAFETEA schedule for safety rulemakings:

https://www.citizen.org/sites/default/files/nhtsatimeline.pdf

Motor vehicle safety in the Surface Transportation Safety Reauthorization Act of 2005:

https://www.citizen.org/sites/default/files/vehicle.pdf

Vehicle safety “must pass” provisions in H.R. 3, excerpts showing support in major newspaper editorials:

https://www.citizen.org/sites/default/files/mustpass.pdf

When Congress acts, NHTSA reacts, and lives are saved:

https://www.citizen.org/sites/default/files/congressacts.pdf

Click on the link below for more information on the highway funding bill:

https://www.citizen.org/autosafety/legislation/tea3/

Stay Updated on Public Citizen

Follow Public Citizen

Support Our Work