Oregon Attorney General John Kroger
In an effort to increase debt collector regulation in the state, Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski has signed a new law that allows the the Oregon Attorney General to sue debt collectors in the Beaver State. The Attorney General’s ability to regulate debt collectors will grow significantly under this bill and offer Oregon debtors a degree of protection from harassing collectors that many states do not.
The legislation will allow Attorney General John Kroger to sue debt collectors who harass Oregon customers by violating their legal rights under Oregon collection law. “This important legislation will help us crack down on debt collectors who routinely violate state and federal law,” AG John Kroger said in a Thursday.
Oregon Senate Bill 328 will allow the state’s attorney general to go to court to enforce a 1977 law against illegal collection practices, the so-called Unlawful Debt Collection Practices Act. Currently, the Oregon attorney general can sue collection agencies under Oregon’s Unlawful Trade Protection Act, but not under this consumer protection law.
Last year, the Oregon Justice Department received 834 written consumer complaints about debt collection agencies and 254 about first-party debt collectors, the attorney general’s office said.
This is a great step that Oregon is taking to make sure that enforcement of collection law is available to their AG in his efforts to protect Oregon consumers.
Tags: Attorney General, Collection Laws, Lawsuits, Oregon
