Attorney General Doug Peterson today announced a settlement with Dallas based MoneyGram Payment Systems, Inc. resolving a multistate investigation which focused on complaints of consumers who used MoneyGram’s wire transfer service to send money to third parties involved in schemes to defraud consumers.  In addition to Nebraska, 48 states and the District of Columbia participated in this settlement.  

Attorney General Doug Peterson is issuing an alert for Nebraskans to be wary of a postcard being sent to Nebraska companies. Several businesses have reported receiving the official-looking postcard purporting to be from “United Business Services Compliance Division” providing a “Notice of Potential Compliance Violation” and listing a phone number to call immediately to avoid fees and penalties. 

This is a scam. The mailing appears to be an official government document, but it is not. Currently, there is not an entity registered to do business in Nebraska by the name of “United Business Services.” The address used by this questionable entity is that of a downtown apartment complex. We believe the scammers are preying on newly registered limited liability companies, who may not know what rules they actually need to follow. 

Recipients of the postcard have reported that when calling the number provided they are directed to pay a one-time fee of roughly $70 to apply for a Certificate of Good Standing or to pay for a similar service that is not necessarily needed. Official, correct certificates may be requested from the Secretary of State’s office online or by mail. 

Today, the Nebraska Attorney General’s Office announces Operation Collection Protection (OCP) which is a national coalition of federal, state, and local enforcement and regulatory organizations committed to working cooperatively to address illegal debt collection practices.  Led by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), more than 75 organizations participated in OCP, including the FTC, CFPB, Department of Justice, 47 other state attorneys general and the District of Columbia, 17 state regulatory agencies, one Canadian provincial regulatory agency, and a number of local authorities.   
In 2010, the total amount of U.S. consumer debt reached nearly $2.5 trillion. Nearly 30 million consumers have an account in collections. Debt collectors make as many as 1 billion contacts a year with consumers. The vast majority of these contacts are perfectly legal. Unfortunately, many are not.

Today, the Nebraska Attorney General’s Office announces Operation Collection Protection (OCP) which is a national coalition of federal, state, and local enforcement and regulatory organizations committed to working cooperatively to address illegal debt collection practices.  Led by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), more than 75 organizations participated in OCP, including the FTC, CFPB, Department of Justice, 47 other state attorneys general and the District of Columbia, 17 state regulatory agencies, one Canadian provincial regulatory agency, and a number of local authorities. 

The Attorneys General have reached a $71 million settlement with Amgen Inc. to resolve allegations that Amgen unlawfully promoted biologic medications Aranesp and Enbrel.  Aranesp is used to treat certain types of anemia by stimulating bone marrow to produce red blood cells.  Enbrel is used to treat a number of conditions, including plaque psoriasis.  The Complaint and Agreement to Entry of Final Consent Judgment (Agreement) filed today alleges that Amgen violated state consumer protection laws by: (1) promoting Aranesp for dosing frequencies longer than the FDA approved label without competent and reliable scientific evidence to substantiate the extended dosing frequencies; (2) promoting Aranesp for anemia caused by cancer without having FDA approval or competent and reliable scientific evidence to support it; and (3) promoting Enbrel for mild plaque psoriasis even though Enbrel is only approved by the FDA to treat chronic moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. 

Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson announced an agreement today with the nutritional supplement chain Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. that permanently bans the sale of products that contain BMPEA, a powerful stimulant and amphetamine-like substance. Products containing BMPEA are sometimes sold as weight loss or performance enhancing nutritional supplements.  

According to the agreement, Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. will not sell products containing or suspected of containing BMPEA.  If a product is at risk of containing BMPEA, Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. must perform testing to prove it does not contain the substance. The Oregon and Vermont Attorneys General have recently announced similar settlements.

Attorney General Doug Peterson, along with the Attorneys General of 21 states announced today that Classmates, Inc. (“Classmates”), along with Florists’ Transworld Delivery, Inc. and FTD.com Inc. (collectively “FTD”), have agreed to pay $11 million to settle allegations that the companies engaged in misleading advertising and billing practices.  The State of Nebraska’s portion of these settlement funds is $210,651.77. 
The Attorneys General allege Classmates and FTD engaged in misleading, unfair, and deceptive practices in violation of state consumer protection laws. Specifically, the Attorneys General’s investigation focused on the companies’ relationships with third-­‐parties who used negative option marketing practices to sell membership programs to consumers doing business online with Classmates and FTD.  Negative option marketing is a sales practice in which a seller treats a consumer’s failure to take an affirmative action, either to reject an offer or cancel an agreement, as assent to be charged for goods or services.