Washington State

Office of the Attorney General

Attorney General

Bob Ferguson

Attorney General Bob Ferguson today announced that Renton-based collection agency Convergent will pay more than $1.6 million over misleading letters it sent to Washingtonians. The letters contained “settlement offers” to settle debts, including student loans, but failed to disclose that Convergent could not enforce the debt in court. The term “settlement offer” deceptively suggested the possibility of litigation to collect the debt. As a result of the Attorney General’s case, the 1,405 Washingtonians who sent money to Convergent will get back the money they sent to the company, plus interest — a total of nearly $710,000.
OLYMPIA — Attorney General Bob Ferguson is offering guidance for utility customers who have past due accounts and may be at risk of a utility shutoff. The statewide moratorium on utility disconnections ends on Sept. 30.
OLYMPIA — 总检察长 Bob Ferguson 将要向有欠费账户并且可能面临公用事业停供的公用事业客户提供指导意见。全州范围的公用事业停供暂停令于 9 月 30 日结束。
OLYMPIA — 總檢察長 Bob Ferguson 將要向有欠費帳戶並且可能面臨公用事業停供的公用事業客戶提供指導意見。全州範圍的公用事業停供暫停令於 9 月 30 日結束。
OLYMPIA: генеральный прокурор Bob Ferguson предлагает рекомендации для потребителей коммунальных услуг, у которых есть просроченные счета и которые могут подвергнуться риску отключения коммунальных услуг. Действие моратория штата на отключение коммунальных услуг заканчивается 30 сентября.
OLYMPIA — El Procurador General Bob Ferguson está ofreciendo orientación para los clientes de servicios públicos que tienen cuentas atrasadas y que podrían estar en riesgo de que les corten los servicios. La moratoria estatal sobre las desconexiones de servicios públicos finaliza el 30 de septiembre.
OLYMPIA — Tổng Chưởng Lý Bob Ferguson đang cung cấp hướng dẫn cho các khách hàng sử dụng dịch vụ tiện ích có các khoản nợ quá hạn và đang gặp nguy cơ bị ngừng dịch vụ tiện ích. Lệnh tạm hoãn ngừng cung cấp dịch vụ tiện ích trên toàn tiểu bang sẽ hết hiệu lực vào ngày 30 tháng 9.
OLYMPIA — Attorney General Bob Ferguson announced today he will appeal Purdue Pharma’s flawed bankruptcy plan. Ferguson asserts that the plan is inadequate, and that a bankruptcy court doesn’t have the authority to prevent attorneys general from enforcing state law, including the decision to pursue the company’s owners, the Sackler family, for their illegal conduct.
BELLINGHAM — Attorney General Bob Ferguson today announced that, as a result of his antitrust consent decree, Bellingham Anesthesia Associates (BAA) must end its illegal dominance of the local health care market and pay $110,000 in costs and fees. BAA used unlawful non-compete clauses and exclusive contracts with area medical providers to take about 90 percent of the market share for physician-administered anesthesia services in Whatcom and Skagit counties. This legally enforceable agreement requires BAA to cease illegally requiring physicians to sign three-year non-compete contracts.
Attorney General Bob Ferguson today announced that his lawfully owed DNA project identified 635 registered sex offenders who illegally failed to provide DNA samples after their criminal conviction. Ferguson’s office is working with local law enforcement around the state to collect DNA samples from these offenders. To date, law enforcement has collected hundreds of new DNA profiles from sex offenders under court order to provide their DNA.

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