Policy Research
All of MCRC’s work begins with research. Check out some of our most recent reports, get informed, and spread the word!
Ensuring Quality and Value at Maryland’s For-Profit Schools
Our newest report analyzes different indicators of quality of for-profit schools and provide policy recommendations that will increase the quality of for-profit schools operating in Maryland.
The report focuses on both private career schools and for-profit schools with particular attention paid to those that maintain a brick-and- mortar presence in Maryland.
No Exit: How Debt Collection Practices Deepen Poverty and Widens the Racial Wealth Gap
In 2018, MCRC released new research revealing that, in Maryland, the high cost of housing, skyrocketing student loan debt, and medical expenses have increased the debt burden of many, while wages have not kept pace – particularly for low-income working families and communities of color. For too many Marylanders, the debt burden becomes unmanageable and they fall behind on their payments.
Although Maryland has some strong consumer protections in place to curtail abusive and deceptive private debt collection practices, when it comes to civic debt (debt owed to the state), Maryland has exempted itself from the very protections it requires of private debt collectors. The concomitant failures to consider either ability-to-repay or affordability options, coupled with outdated, punitive debt-collection practices results in a system that deepens poverty and widens the racial wealth gap for low-income Marylanders. Using a mix of qualitative and quantitative analysis, our findings reveal the disparate impact of consumer and civic debt and debt collection practices on communities-of-color.
Making the Grade
Our report was the first state-level report on the impact for-profit colleges and private career schools have on students. It examined the high cost of education, high debt burden, high default rates, completion and employment rates, unfair or deceptive marketing and targeting of communities of color and veterans by these schools in Maryland.
It found that these predatory institutions target veterans, students of color, and women for their access to federal aid, leave students in large amounts of student debt, and offer poor career outcomes for many graduates.
This research led to the passage of legislation to create stronger regulations for this industry, as well as the creation of the Know Before You Enroll campaign, which helps prospective students identify and avoid dangerous schools.
Taking the Low road
Car insurance in Maryland is expensive – especially for low-income drivers. One reason why our state has the ninth most expensive auto-insurance rates in the country is thanks to non-driving related factors by insurance companies. Recent studies have demonstrated that cumulatively these factors increase the cost of car insurance for low-income drivers and lower them for wealthier drivers.
Building on this research, MCRC conducted a new analysis of insurance premium quotes in order to understand the impact of non-driving related factors on premium prices for female Marylander drivers. Unlike previous studies, this analysis isolates the impact of individual, non-driving related factors on premium prices.
Our report found that women pay more than their male counterparts, and single women pay more than married women.