Announcements, information & updates from the Attorney General Alliance Members and Associates
October 14, 2021
ATTORNEY GENERAL NEWS
California Attorney General Rob Bonta led a bipartisan coalition of 26 attorneys general in an amicus brief in support of the United States and four federally recognized tribes in their efforts to uphold critical protections guaranteed under the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA). Filed before the U.S. Supreme Court in Haaland v. Brackeen and Cherokee Nation v. Brackeen, the amicus brief highlights the states’ compelling interest in standing up for the well-being of Native American children.
Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson led a bipartisan coalition of 15 attorneys general calling on Congress to pass legislation supporting local journalism. The attorneys general joining Washington’s letter are: Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, the District of Columbia and Guam.

The letter calls on key leaders to support and pass the Local Journalism Sustainability Act of 2021 (H.R. 3940 and S. 2434). The act would provide:

  • Up to $250 in tax credits to local newspaper subscribers to offset subscription fees;
  • Up to $5,000 in tax credits for some local businesses for buying ads in local newspapers; and
  • Up to $25,000 for local newspapers to hire local journalists.

“Regional journalism is critical, as is journalism by and for Black, Indigenous, and people of color, including ethnic media organizations,” the letter continues. “These organizations are best positioned to identify, investigate, and report on issues of concern to their respective communities, and Congress should take action to support and strengthen them.”
Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge announced the allocation of an additional $100,000 for the Child Abduction Response Teams (CART) program, a multiagency initiative coordinated by the Criminal Justice Institute at the University of Arkansas. In 2019, Arkansas was the first state to have a collaborative statewide certification of all twelve CARTs, which are used to streamline resources and better protect children if they are abducted, missing or endangered. 
CONSUMER PROTECTION
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong issued the following statement praising the announcement that the U.S. Department of Education is easing restrictions on the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program to provide immediate relief to thousands of public servants. 
 
Attorney General Tong had recently called on the U.S. Department of Education to overhaul the implementation of the program, noting that since the program’s inception, nearly all PSLF applications have been rejected. A bipartisan Congress created the PSLF program in 2007 to encourage student loan borrowers to enter public service jobs in return for forgiving the remaining balance of their federal student loans after ten years of on-time loan payments.
Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody took legal action against a Florida pool company and its owner for taking upfront payments and leaving jobs incomplete. According to an investigation by the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division, Olympus Pools, Inc. and owner James I. Staten, Jr. allegedly accepted payments from hundreds of consumers in exchange for contracted pool services, then failed to perform the services as promised. Since March of this year, the Florida Attorney General’s Office received more than 200 consumer complaints about Olympus Pools—amounting to an alleged total loss to these consumers of more than $8 million.

The civil action seeks to permanently ban the defendants from engaging in certain activities related to the pool construction business. The action also aims to require the company and its owners to provide restitution or reimbursement to affected consumers. In addition, the defendants could be liable for more than $2 million in civil penalties and enhanced civil penalties for violating the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.
Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry and Acting U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Louisiana Ellison C. Travis are urging suspected Hurricane Ida fraud victims to file complaints with the National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF). Their plea comes on the heels of multiple reports of suspected contractor, FEMA, and SBA fraud related to Hurricane Ida.

The NCDF was established by the U.S. Department of Justice after Hurricane Katrina. It is a nationwide organization of law enforcement agents that further detects, investigates, and prosecutes those responsible for disaster related fraud. The NCDF Hotline receives complaints and refers them to the appropriate federal, state, or local agency for investigation.
Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey filed two sets of comments calling on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to revise its policies for planning and funding development of new electric transmission infrastructure to promote clean energy, environmental justice, and consumer protection.  

AG Healey is committed to ensuring access to clean energy at affordable prices for all Massachusetts ratepayers, and to working with other state attorneys general and consumer advocates to foster greater participation, transparency, and consideration of environmental and energy justice in FERC proceedings.  
Director Rohit Chopra was sworn in recently to lead the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Here is this link to his first blog post as Director, The CFPB is looking out for families, workers, and communities.
ORGANIZED RETAIL CRIME
AGA Partner Lowes has created an initiative to celebrate first responders. They have put together a special “thank you” for these individuals. We appreciate our first responders and the hard work they do. Please feel free to share with all first responders to receive a 10% discount on a purchase October 22-24, 2021.

The Attorney General Alliance will be hosting a dinner at the Presley Motors Automobile Museum in celebration of current Chief Deputies, Chiefs of Staff and Former & Retired Executive Employees on Tuesday, October 19th, 2021 at 7:30 pm. For more information and registration please contact Paige Stiles. Email: pstiles@agalliance.org
VIRTUAL SEMINAR LIBRARY
Missed our live programs? No problem! Follow the button below to visit our Virtual Seminar Library for access to all recordings.

Do you have a webinar topic suggestion? We want to hear from you! Please email ideas to Patricia Salazar at PSalazar@AGAlliance.org.
CWAG Executive Committee
- AG Wayne Stenehjem - AG Phil Weiser -
- AG Jason Ravnsborg - AG Hector Balderas -

AG Alliance Co-Chairs
- AG Lawrence Wasden - AG Sean Reyes - AG Karl Racine -
AGA |  (916) 478-0075 | WWW.AGALLIANCE.ORG

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