Names in the News

Bank Scams

BANKS AND OTHER MONEY-LENDING INSTITUTIONS violated the Truth in Lending Act nearly 180,000 times between 1990 and 1994, according to a study released in June 1995 by consumer advocate Ralph Nader. The Truth in Lending Act requires banks to disclose key information about their loan rates.

 The largest single category of violations involved the section of the Act that deals specifically with the required content of disclosures to consumers. That section requires disclosures of the amount financed, the finance charge, the annual percentage rate, the payment schedule, the total sale price and other basic data critical to the ability of the borrower to make an informed judgment about the terms of the transactions.

 The 180,000 violations represent only those found during "samplings" of loan portfolios of individual institutions by federal government examiners. The total number of individual violations and the number of consumers affected are substantially higher than the numbers reflected in the examiners' samples. The totals also do not include violations committed by non-depository financial institutions such as mortgage and finance companies.

 Nader says the pending efforts in Congress to emasculate protections for consumers on loan contracts are "foolhardy and dangerous" in the face of a tidal wave of violations of the Truth in Lending Act.

 "Instead of attempting to gut protections provided consumers by the Truth in Lending Act, the first priority of the banking committees of the House and Senate should be to determine why financial institutions are committing so many violations and why the regulatory agencies have failed to stem the tide," Nader says. "We need congressional oversight to spur enforcement, not more slash-and-burn tactics against consumer laws."

 The Federal Reserve, which enforces the Truth in Lending Act, refused to comment on the report.

 

Troubled Waters

SOME 53 MILLION PEOPLE IN THE UNITED STATES - more than one in five - drank water that violated Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) safety standards in 1993 and 1994, according to two studies released in late May 1995.

 According to "You Are What You Drink," by Erik Olson of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), and "In The Drink," by Brian Cohen and Richard Wiles of the Environmental Working Group, water contamination is a significant public health problem in the United States. Scientists estimate there are nearly 1,000 deaths and at least 400,000 cases of waterborne illness each year, and thousands more suffer long-term health effects such as cancer and birth defects from chemical contaminants and radioactivity, the report found. Common contaminants found in drinking water included fecal contamination, lead, radiation, parasites and pesticides.

 The release of the reports marks the first time that a nationwide survey of cryptosporidium contamination and easy-to-use EPA data on violations of the Safe Drinking Water Act for every U.S. community drinking water utility have been made available to the public.

 One of the studies found that at least 45 million people drink water from systems that have cryptosporidium in their water supplies. Cryptosporidium is the parasite that infected more than 400,000 people and killed more than 100 in Milwaukee in 1993.

 Yet many water systems fail to notify the public about unsafe water, in violation of federal law. And EPA enforcement of safety standards are rare - effectively encouraging more violations, according to NRDC's Olson.

 "When hundreds of thousands - if not millions - of Americans are getting sick from tap water every year, it's incredible that the only discussion in Congress is to weaken drinking water standards, rather than strengthening and adequately funding them," says Olson, who authored the NRDC report. "A ęconsumer beware' attitude is not a solution to this problem - especially when we can make drinking water safe for about $25 per year for the vast majority of households."

 A statement by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency head Carol Browner says the reports "are proof that this is no time to roll back public health protections."

OSHA Fines Omega

WITH FEDERAL OFFICIALS SAYING the company had exhibited "callous disregard" for the safety of its workers, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in May 1995 proposed $1.3 million in penalties against Lyndhurst, New Jersey-based Omega Plastics Corp. for alleged safety violations that resulted in numerous employee injuries, including mutilations and amputations.

 "This employer exhibited callous disregard for the welfare of employees that resulted in 10 serious injuries in a 13-month period," says Secretary of Labor Robert Reich. "All those injuries could have been prevented by observing the protections of OSHA standards."

 The accidents at Omega Plastics resulted when employees' hands, fingers or arms were caught in moving or rotating parts while they were working on printing presses that did not have machine and power transmission guards required by OSHA standards.

 Omega Plastics, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Alpha Industries, Inc., manufactures plastic bags for garments, shoes and general merchandise. The presses are used for printing on the bags. The company employs 85 workers at the site.

Omega was cited for 22 alleged willful violations of OSHA standards requiring guards between rollers and cylinders and on printing presses gears. It also was cited for two alleged willful violations for having unguarded operation points on the presses and for failing to guard press chains and sprockets. The company had the necessary machine guards on hand, but had neglected to install them.

Omega did not respond to calls by Multinational Monitor.

 

- Russell Mokhiber