Announcements, information & updates from the Attorney General Alliance Members and Associates
May 13, 2022
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U.S. SUPREME COURT JUSTICES |
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Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall is calling on U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland to enforce federal law against attempts to intimidate U.S. Supreme Court Justices by protesting outside the Justices’ homes.
Attorney General Marshall spearheaded a letter co-signed by 23 other state attorneys general demanding that U.S. Attorney General Garland take action to enforce federal law protecting Supreme Court Justices who are increasingly the target of groups of protestors gathering outside the Justices’ homes.
Attorney General Marshall was joined by attorneys general from Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming in writing the letter to Attorney General Garland.
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Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody is urging the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to enact measures to help human trafficking survivors rebuild credit after escaping captivity. Attorney General Moody and 40 other state attorneys general to include Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia and Wyoming, wrote to the CFPB urging support of the intent of the Debt Bondage Repair Act in the agency’s rulemaking implementing recent amendments to Section 605C of the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
The Debt Bondage Repair Act became law in December 2021. It prohibits credit-rating agencies from providing consumer reports that contain negative items about human trafficking survivors from any period during which the individual was being trafficked. It is a common tactic of traffickers to strip their victims of financial independence or stability in order to continue victimization. Even after victims escape perpetrators, these survivors are often left with a wrecked credit history that leaves survivors unable to rent an apartment, purchase a car or find employment.
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A bipartisan coalition of 35 Attorneys General, led by Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch and Oregan Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum, wrote a letter to the American Law Institute urging them to reject proposed changes to Section 213 of the Model Penal Code that would weaken the ability to prosecute sexual assault, abuse, exploitation, and trafficking crimes; jeopardize the safety of victims of these crimes; and restrict the ability of law enforcement to protect the general public from recidivist behavior.
The letter was signed by the Attorneys General of Mississippi, Oregon, Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virgin Islands, Washington, West Virginia.
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Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost's office's specialized team of Medicaid fraud investigators and prosecutors has been named the top unit in the country by the U.S. Office of the Inspector General. The award – the Inspector General’s Award for Excellence in Fighting Fraud, Waste and Abuse award – was awarded as a result of the Ohio Medicaid Fraud Control Unit’s performance in 2021. Ohio’s team collaborates with several Federal and State partners to identify, investigate and prosecute fraud in the Ohio Medicaid program as well as abuse and neglect against Ohio’s most vulnerable people.
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“What these men and women see every day is grueling. They see what most Ohioans don’t want to believe exists. Sadly, our most vulnerable people are the targets of the despicably unscrupulous. This team does an incredible job to protect our sisters and brothers, and consistently outperforms others because they are deeply committed to justice. They care. It’s personal to them. And they are making a difference in the lives of so many. I’m proud to work alongside them.”
--Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost
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AGA Sponsor Southern Company, for the seventh consecutive year, has been recognized as a Top 50 Company for Diversity, and for its efforts to hire, retain and promote women, minorities, people with disabilities, LGBTQ, and veterans. Southern Company has moved up 27 spots on the list over that period. Southern Company was recognized on five other specialty lists.
These rankings are based on 2021 company-submitted data in six key areas: 1) leadership accountability, 2) human capital diversity metrics, 3) talent programs, 4) workforce practices, 5) supplier diversity and 6) philanthropy. View the entire Top 50 Companies for Diversity list.
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AGA Sponsor Horizon, annouced a recent initiative for Mental Health Awareness Month and Healthy Vision Month as they partner with mental health expert and New York Times best-selling author, Lori Gottlieb, to highlight the emotional burden of living with TED – a serious, progressive, and potentially vision-threatening rare autoimmune condition.
The campaign encourages people living with TED to write a “Dear TED” letter directly to their disease about the effects it has had and how they are taking back control of their health and getting the care they need. TED is a chronic, or lifelong, disease that can cause vision impairment, making day-to-day activities such as walking, driving and working challenging. Symptoms like eye bulging, redness and double vision can cause some people to no longer look like themselves, resulting in feelings of self-consciousness.
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AGA ALLIANCE PARTNESHIP PROGRAMS |
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The Attorney General Alliance and Ambassador Ken Salazar recently welcomed Attorneys General from Mexico and the United States and other members of the AGA Community to the US/Mexico Binational Attorney General Summit on May 11th in Phoenix, Arizona. The programming was based on the issues facing both the US and Mexico to include human trafficking and illicit goods. Since 2008, the AGA Alliance Partnership Program has worked with our Mexican counterparts to foster a strong working relationship to combat crime.
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The AGA-Africa is an international rule-of-law exchange established in 2016 for the purpose of collaborating with African stakeholders, contributing to the exchange of knowledge to support the rule of law, and leading to the reduction and prevention of transnational criminal activity. AGA-Africa aims to foster robust relationships with justice and law enforcement agencies and officials throughout Africa.
There is upcoming programming and we are looking for qualified and willing presenters. Scholarships are available for those in the AG community. In the coming months, we have events that will touch upon numerous issues including but not limited to Human Trafficking, Drug Crimes, Anti-Money Laundering, Wildlife Trafficking, Virtual Assets, Immigration, Election Law, Consumer Protection, and trial advocacy. If you have any interest in traveling to Africa to facilitate these events, please contact AGA General Counsel David Blake at david.blake@agalliance.org.
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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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CWAG Executive Committee
AG Alliance Co-Chairs
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Attorney General Alliance 5050 | Laguna Blvd., Ste. 112-323 | Elk Grove, CA 95758
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