Announcements, information & updates from the Attorney General Alliance Members and Associates
April 1, 2022
ATTORNEY GENERAL NEWS
UPCOMING EVENTS
This convening will bring together a variety of stakeholders shaping the direction of this industry with the State Attorneys General Community. The Cannabis Project Spring Meeting will focus on combatting illicit market activity and understanding social equity programs.
This seminar provides the unique opportunity to discuss the emerging challenges faced by brand owners and government agencies in combating illicit trade and counterfeiting. This seminar will offer the chance to share strategies, examples and innovative new ideas through interactive panel discussions, case studies and presentations. 
The US/Mexico Binational Attorney General Summit will provide a forum for state Attorneys General from the United States and Mexico, as well as federal agencies and private sector partners to share experiences and advances in border issues. The Summit provides a forum for collaboration at the state, national and binational level on diverse topics such as human trafficking, intellectual property, cannabis, money laundering, asset forfeiture, and cybercrime in the U.S. and Mexico.

Each of the state Attorneys General from Mexico and the United States will be able to participate in this binational exchange. If you are interested in joining us for the US/Mexico Binational Attorney General Summit please reach out to Ale Stephens at astephens@agalliance.org.
CONSUMER PROTECTION
North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein and Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch led a bipartisan group of 44 attorneys general asking social media companies to give parents more ability to protect their children online by allowing third-party apps that empower parents to monitor content. More than half of young people between the ages of 12 and 17 use Snapchat on a weekly basis, and nearly two-thirds use TikTok on a weekly basis.

Attorney General Stein and Attorney General Fitch are joined in sending this letter by the Attorneys General of Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. 
ENVIRONMENTAL
Guam Attorney General Leevin Taitano Camacho and the Office of the Attorney General recently launched a new web page and phone line to get information and are calling on the public to provide stories and information they may have about military waste dumping that took place at Ordot Dump over the decades and the type of waste it deposited there before the dump closed in 2011. The search for eyewitnesses, documents, photographs, and other evidence of military dumping is part of the government of Guam’s federal lawsuit.
OPIOIDS
Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody announced the securement of more than $870 million for opioid abatement from CVS Health Corporation, CVS Pharmacy, Inc., Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd. and Allergan PLC. CVS will now pay $484 million to the State of Florida, Teva will pay nearly $195 million, and Allergan will pay more than $134 million to resolve claims relating to the companies’ role in the opioid epidemic. Teva will also provide $84 million worth of its generic NARCAN nasal spray to the State. Additionally, Attorney General Moody is announcing that the Endo Health Solutions settlement is now finalized, with every litigating city and county in Florida—more than 90 in total—participating. 
“The opioid epidemic is wreaking havoc on Florida families. Since my first day in office, I have worked tirelessly to hold accountable those companies who helped start this crisis—with today’s announcements we have now secured an additional $870 million to help mitigate the harm caused to Florida’s communities. The monies secured from CVS, Teva, Allergan and Endo will help further our efforts to remediate the harm and suffering of Floridians.”
-Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody
HUMAN TRAFFICKING
Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes joined Utah authorities in the arrest of 21 individuals involved in a large-scale human trafficking sting. 

The Utah County Sheriff’s Office, in collaboration with seven other Utah police departments, Federal Homeland Security Investigations and the Utah Attorney General’s Office, rescued three trafficking victims during their operation conducted between February 14-17, 2022. Some victims were trafficked through social media, but could not disclose which platforms due to ongoing investigations. The sheriff's office noted that some are "less-known or less-used" social platforms.
ORGANIZED RETAIL CRIME
California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced the arrest of and felony charges against members of an organized retail theft ring operating throughout California, including Los Angeles, Alameda, Fresno, Kern, Orange, Riverside, Sacramento, San Bernardino, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Ventura counties. The California Department of Justice filed charges against nine defendants following a California Highway Patrol investigation that began in 2021. During a search and arrest operation in Los Angeles, officers arrested five of the targeted suspects and recovered approximately $62,000 in cash and $135,000 of stolen merchandise from major retailers, including Macy’s, Columbia Sportswear, Abercrombie & Fitch, J.C. Penney, and Lululemon.
“Organized retail theft hurts businesses, employees, and the public — and this criminal activity will not be tolerated in California. Today we take another step toward tackling this issue by announcing the arrests and felony charges against individuals alleged to be participants in an organized criminal scheme targeting retailers throughout our state. As our state’s chief law enforcement officer, I will continue to aggressively pursue and hold accountable those who participate in organized retail theft.”
--California Attorney General Rob Bonta
ROBOCALLS
District of Columbia Attorney General Karl A. Racine, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, and Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden announced a partnership with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to investigate robocalls and coordinate their efforts to safeguard residents in their jurisdictions from these spoofing and robocalls.

The Memorandums of Understanding between state and federal robocall investigators establish critical information-sharing and cooperation structures to investigate spoofing and robocall scam campaigns. More than twenty states have now established formal working relationships with the FCC's Enforcement Bureau to support robocall investigations and protect American consumers and businesses.

With the addition of Idaho, Wyoming, Kentucky, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Minnesota and New Jersey, these state-federal partnerships now total 22.
"Michigan residents have received more than a billion robocalls since 2018. My department's partnership with the FCC means our state will benefit from the long reach of the commission's resources and allow us to better protect residents from these intrusive calls." 
-Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel
“Robocalls are a global problem and individually we as states are not equipped to tackle such an enormous issue. But there’s force in numbers and when we team up with other states and federal agencies like the FCC, we’re much more effective. Robocalls are a plague and combatting them takes an all-hands-on-deck approach.”
- Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden
“Unwanted and illegal robocall scams are on the rise, and many District residents are unaware of the protections available to help them avoid becoming a target. I urge District residents to register for the national ‘Do Not Call’ list, ignore anonymous calls, use a blocking service, and think twice before sharing your phone number. With this new federal-local partnership, we are increasing the tools in our toolbox to help crack down on these annoying and harmful calls DC consumers receive and further enforce the District’s consumer protection laws.”
- District of Columbia Attorney General Karl A. Racine
Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita announced a historic settlement with Piratel, LLC to help combat the plague of robocalling. Attorney General Rokita filed suit in October 2021 against Startel, LLC, an Indiana company, and several other defendants for allegedly assisting and facilitating foreign robocallers in India, the Philippines, and Singapore. After just a few months of negotiations, Attorney General Rokita and Piratel have come to a resolution that protects Hoosiers and other Americans from illegal robocalls. 
“From day one, it has been my mission to fight illegal and unwanted robocalls. This settlement is a win for Hoosiers. To continue winning these battles, we need telecom companies to join us in our anti-robocall campaign. For telecom companies that turn their backs, let this be a warning. There will be major consequences if you send Hoosiers illegal robocalls." 
- Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita
Vermont Attorney General T.J. Donovan filed a civil lawsuit against Missouri-based company, Karabell Industries, and its owner, Eli Karabell, for making repeated illegal telemarketing calls and harassing state legislators to pay him exorbitant sums of money. The lawsuit was filed in Washington Superior Court after numerous state legislators complained of receiving late-night phone calls from the Defendants who claimed to offer “government consulting services.” The Defendants then emailed state legislators proposing contracts and demanding payments of $18,500 per hour or even $48 billion. The Attorney General’s lawsuit alleges that the Defendants—who have ignored requests to stop—violated Vermont’s Consumer Protection Act and Telephone Solicitation Act.
“Companies that bring illegal calls into Vermont can expect to be held accountable. My office will continue to investigate and bring charges against companies that are breaking the law and targeting Vermonters.”
-Vermont Attorney General TJ Donovan
Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson announced an initiative to combat robocalls in Washington state. The Attorney General’s Office created a new complaint form for Washingtonians tailored for reporting robocalls. Additionally, as part of an effort to educate and inform Washingtonians, the Attorney General’s Office launched a website with descriptions of robocalls and telemarketing scams, including strategies for combating them.
“Robocalls are more than just annoying — they can also be illegal,” Ferguson said. “Many of our cases are based on tips we receive from Washingtonians. If robocalls are harassing you, please file a complaint with my office.”
-Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson
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.
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