Announcements, information and updates from CWAG Members and Associates
January 25, 2018
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2018 CWAG Chair's Initiative
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May 3-4, 2018
Scottsdale, Arizona
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CWAG Chair, Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich, announces his 2018 CWAG Chair's Initiative, which will focus on cyber security, data privacy, and digital piracy. Please mark your calendars and prepare to engage in a dialogue on these important topics!
Building on CWAG's Cyber Security efforts in 2016 and 2017 at the Cyber Security and Technology Forums and the Cyber Security Working Group established in June 2017, General Brnovich's Initiative will feature an in-depth conversation to discuss financial technology and government and industry cooperation, vertical integration and platform development issues, encryption and data security issues facing public, private and law enforcement along with national and international privacy concerns.
To find complete details about hotel accommodations, suggested transportation and to register online, use the following link
CWAG 2018 Chair's Initiative Registration Site. To register click on the "Register" link and enter your name, last name and email address, then select your registration type.
If you are an existing sponsor you may use the registration code that was provided to you to register for the Annual Meeting. If you need your code re-sent, please contact Event Coordinator and Meeting Manager Ale Stephens at
[email protected] or 303.304.9206.
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Attorney General Karl A. Racine Welcomes Supreme Court Win for District in Important Public Safety Case
CWAG Associate Attorney General Karl A. Racine of the District of Columbia issued a statement in response to a United States Supreme Court victory for the District in an important public-safety case. In District of Columbia v. Wesby, the court ruled in the District’s favor regarding arrests that Metropolitan Police Department officers made in 2008 at a late-night party in which the partygoers did not have permission to use the home where the party took place. The court unanimously found that the officers were entitled to qualified immunity, and the court ruled 7-2 that the officers had probable cause to arrest the partygoers.
“We are pleased the justices found that, given the particular circumstances in this case, the officers had both probable cause and qualified immunity. This is an important ruling that means that police officers can continue to carry out their vital duty to protect public safety.” (
Read more)
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Supreme Court Sides with North Dakota in WOTUS Decision
CWAG
Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem of North Dakota applauded the US Supreme Court’s unanimous decision recognizing that federal district courts have jurisdiction to hear legal challenges to the “Waters of the U.S.” Rule (WOTUS).
“That Rule would greatly and unlawfully expand the federal government’s authority over North Dakota’s land and water resources and our state’s agricultural and natural resources and vastly limit legitimate state authority to control water pollution,”
said Attorney General Stenehjem.
Attorney General
Stenehjem leads a coalition of twelve states that obtained the first preliminary injunction against the WOTUS Rule in 2015, in a decision issued by the US District Court of the District of North Dakota that also accepted North Dakota’s argument that district courts have jurisdiction to hear challenges to the WOTUS Rule. The decision upholds North Dakota’s position on the jurisdictional issue, reversing a ruling that challenges to the WOTUS Rule must be brought in federal appeals courts.
(Read more)
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Montana Department of Justice Releases 2017 Child Fatality Review Report
CWAG Attorney General Tim Fox of Montana released the 2017 Child Fatality Review Team Report, a review of deaths of children previously reported to the Child and Family Services Division of the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services. State law requires DPHHS to notify the Montana Department of Justice the fatality of any child who had previously been reported to CFSD. Speaking to the report, Attorney General Fox said,
“The review team’s findings are heartbreaking and simply unacceptable. I’m committed to working with Governor Bullock and DPHHS to give all Montanans the opportunity to live a healthy life. The state can and must do better.”
(Read more)
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Judge Sentences Larry Nassar to 40 to 175 Years in Prison for Sexual Assault
CWAG Associate Attorney General Bill Schuette of Michigan announced that Lawrence G. Nassar was sentenced to 40 to 175 years in prison for seven counts of felony criminal sexual conduct in the first degree. The judge also awarded restitution to survivors for an amount to be determined. The sentence, read in open court, follows 7 days of victim impact statements. Over 156 survivors were able to present their statements to court either in person, via video or having it read on their behalf. Nassar was previously an osteopathic sports physician at Michigan State University and USA Gymnastics. Attorney General Schuette initiated his first charges against Nassar on November 22, 2016, and the second round of charges occurred on February 22, 2017.
(Read more)
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Human Traffickers Receive Maximum Penalty
CWAG Attorney General Sean Reyes announced that after pleading guilty to two counts each of human trafficking, two defendants were sentenced to an indeterminate prison sentence of 1-15 years on each count, the maximum sentence for their offenses, for charges investigated and prosecuted by the Office of the Utah Attorney General. At a preliminary hearing last July, seven women testified about their experience working for the defendants. They testified that they were exploited because of their drug addictions, poverty, lack of housing, and other vulnerabilities to recruit them to work in commercial sex. Human trafficking tips should be reported to the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 888-373-7888.
(Read more)
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Secretary Zinke Approves Initial Plan to Build a Life-Saving Road for Alaska Native Village of King Cove
U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke signed an agreement with the Alaska Native King Cove Native Corp., which is made up of tribal members from the local Agdaagux and Belkofski tribes, to build a life-saving road between the Native village and the nearby all-weather airport in Cold Bay. The village of King Cove is an isolated area in the Aleutian peninsula that currently lacks any safe and reliable ground transportation for medical evacuation in the case of an emergency. There have been 18 deaths attributed to the lack of road access, either in plane crashes or the inability to receive timely medical treatment. In a community with no hospital or doctor, King Cove residents must fly 600 miles to Anchorage for most medical procedures. "Above all, the federal government's job is to keep our people safe and respect our treaty commitments with Native Americans and Alaska Natives. Today I am proudly fulfilling both of those missions," said Secretary Zinke. "Previous administrations prioritized birds over human lives, and that's just wrong. The people of King Cove have been stewarding the land and wildlife for thousands of years and I am confident that working together we will be able to continue responsible stewardship while also saving precious lives."
(Read more)
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Attorney General Data Breach Bill Passes Senate Judiciary Committee
CWAG Attorney General Marty Jackley of South Dakota confirms the Attorney General sponsored bill that requires the reporting of data breaches of personal information to consumers and to the Attorney General has unanimously passed out of the Senate Judiciary Committee this morning.
“Data breaches such as those that have occurred with Equifax and Target have affected thousands of South Dakotans’ financial security and personal information. Today, the Senate Judiciary has taken an important step to protect consumers and to assist law enforcement in its investigation of major data breaches,” said Attorney General Jackley. (
Read more)
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AG Brnovich Defends Arizona Law Barring State Contractors from Boycotting Israel
CWAG Attorney General Mark Brnovich of Arizona announced his office will defend an Arizona law that prevents state-funded contractors from boycotting Israel. Attorney General Brnovich filed a Motion to Dismiss in
Jordahl et al v. Brnovich et al
arguing Arizona’s law was enacted to prevent national origin discrimination.
“The law prohibits all state contractors, who receive taxpayer money, from discriminating on the basis of national origin. Nothing in the statute prevents the defendant from exercising his First Amendment rights,"
said Attorney General Mark Brnovich. In 2016, the Arizona Legislature passed the bill preventing public entities from awarding contracts to companies or individuals that engage in boycotts of Israel.
(Read more)
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AG Coffman Announces Over $2M Judgement Against Two Lenders
CWAG Attorney General Cynthia H. Coffman of Colorado announced that her office has settled a lawsuit against two lenders who charged predatory interest rates to Colorado consumers. The settlement will bring over $2M in funds back to Colorado consumers.
“Consumer loans come in many forms. My office works to stop unscrupulous lenders who try and evade Colorado’s consumer protections by disguising their loans as other transactions,”
said Attorney General Coffman. “This settlement helps ensure that Colorado’s consumer lending laws will continue to provide protection to those in need.” The consumer lenders initially filed suit against the Attorney General claiming that their transactions with consumers were not loans as defined by Colorado law. In a November 16, 2015 decision, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Attorney General and held that the transactions were in fact loans, and that those loans were subject to Colorado’s interest rate limits and other consumer protections.
(Read more)
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Scammers Falsely Claiming Affiliation with Attorney General Lawrence Wasden
CWAG Attorney General Lawrence Wasden of Idaho is warning Idahoans of a consumer scam involving the use of his name and office. The Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division was alerted by a Latah County resident that she was contacted via telephone by a man purporting to be from Publishers Clearing House. When the woman questioned the caller’s legitimacy, the caller said he would have the Idaho Attorney General contact her to verify the call. Soon after, the woman received a call from a man claiming to be “Mr. Wasden,” who told her the first call was from Publishers Clearing House. Both calls were fake and part of an apparent scam.
“While I’d love to be the bearer of good news, I want to make sure all Idahoans know that my office has no connection whatsoever with Publishers Clearing House,”
Attorney General Wasden said. “Anyone receiving a call like this should just hang up because it’s a scam.”
(Read more)
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AG Lauds Target Shipping to Guam
CWAG Attorney General Elizabeth Barrett-Anderson of Guam has been urging retail store Target to ship online purchases to Guam. The store recently opened shipping to physical addresses, according to a statement issued by the Attorney General. Attorney General Barrett-Anderson said in a statement that she was urging Target to allow online shipping for two years but “up until two days ago, Target has rebuffed the Attorney General’s efforts.” A reporter for the Wall Street Journal in an article about the Kmart store on Guam asked Target why it didn’t offer shipping to the island and it was after that inquiry that Target allowed shipments to Guam, the statement said.
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Attorney General Laxalt Commends Federal Commission’s Action to Save Money for Consumers
CWAG Attorney General Adam Paul Laxalt of Nevada applauded a decision by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to request that developers of multiple pending interstate natural gas pipeline projects adjust their proposed incremental rates resulting from the January 1 reduced tax rate. FERC sent letters on January 12th and 16th to developers on the heels of a January 9th letter issued by a bipartisan coalition of 18 states, including Nevada. The coalition urged FERC to take action to ensure public utility companies pass along these tax savings to consumers:
“I joined an 18 state bipartisan coalition of attorneys general and consumer advocates to protect Nevadans and ensure the benefits of the federal tax reform plan are passed on to utility consumers,”
said Attorney General Laxalt. “I am delighted to see that the bipartisan efforts helped prompt quick action by FERC. We encourage federal regulators to continue to look at opportunities for additional pass through savings for consumers throughout the entire State."
(Read more)
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Attorney General Becerra: Retailer Sentenced to Prison for $5.6 Million Fraud Scheme
CWAG Attorney General Xavier Becerra of California announced that Jeong Kim, the owner and operator of Fashion Q and Q retail clothing stores throughout Southern California, was sentenced to two years in prison for sales tax evasion, false income tax returns, failure to pay taxes and workers’ compensation fraud.
“Like the rest of us, businesses must pay their taxes. Tax evasion is a crime,”
said Attorney General Becerra. “Failing to pay payroll taxes, sales taxes, and workers compensation insurance hurts employees, our local communities, and businesses that are playing by the rules. The California Department of Justice will continue to hold criminals accountable and protect the pockets of Californians who pay their fair share.”
(Read more)
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