Sweetwater Reporter (Sweetwater, Tex.), Vol. 113, No. 353, Ed. 1 Sunday, January 8, 2012 Page: 4 of 20
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Viewpoints
Page A4 ■ Sunday, January 8, 2012
Sweetwater Reporter
DEDICATED TO PROUDLY DELIVERING LOCAL NEWS SINCE 1881
1—x Sweetwater 1
Reporter
■ ■_ nUEMBER
2010
P.O. Box 750/112 W. Third
I
TEXAS PRESS
Sweetwater, Texas 79556
ASSOCIATION
325/236-6677
Fax: 325/235-4967
Website:
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EDITORIAL POLICY
The editorial section of the newspaper is a forum for
expression of a variety of viewpoints. All articles except
those labeled "Editorials" reflect the opinions of the writ-
ers and not those of the Sweetwater Reporter
Abbott
GUEST COLUMN
Building better
credit in the new year
A new year often brings resolutions - such as endeav-
oring to spend less, save more or repair bad credit.
Maintaining a good credit report can translate into quicker
loan approvals, competitive interest rates and a strong
financial foundation. Whatever the motivation, Texans
have an interest in obtaining and main-
taining a good credit rating. A few sim-
ple steps can help borrowers repair bad
credit.
Most importantly, borrowers should
always do their best to pay their bills on
time. Making timely payments ensures
borrowers have a positive payment his-
tory, which creditors weigh heavily when
they make lending decisions.
All Texans should periodically examine
Ai jfl their credit reports and take quick action
IIIC!J to address any disputed or incorrect infor-
mation. It is particularly important to
address any inaccurate information on a
credit report. Federal law requires each of
the nationwide credit reporting bureaus -
Equifax, Experian and TransUnion - to provide one free
credit report per year to borrowers who request a copy of
their report. The credit reporting bureaus must provide
the borrower with everything in his or her credit report
and a list of everyone who has requested the report within
the past year.
Under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act, both the
credit bureau and any organization responsible for report-
ing inaccurate information must correct errors or incom-
plete information on credit reports. Texans who discover
errors on their credit reports should send a written dispute
letter to both the credit reporting bureau and the creditor
who filed the information.
Dispute letters seeking corrections should very specifi-
cally describe the facts and circumstances surrounding the
mistake. In addition to providing their complete name and
address, borrowers should include copies (not originals)
of any supporting documentation, such as receipts, state-
ments that verify payments and a copy of the inaccurate
credit report. Each error on the report should be circled
or highlighted and accompanied by a detailed explanation
clarifying why the information is inaccurate. Borrowers
should send their dispute letter by certified mail, return
receipt requested, so they can document that the credit
bureau and creditor received their correction request.
Borrowers should keep copies of the dispute letter and any
enclosures.
Once a credit bureau is notified of a dispute, it must
investigate the items in question (unless it considers the
dispute to be frivolous). The credit bureau also must for-
ward all relevant data the borrower provided about the
inaccuracy to the appropriate creditor. Upon receiving
the information, the creditor must review the dispute and
report the results back to the credit bureau. If the report-
ing creditor discovers the disputed information is inaccu-
rate, it must notify all three credit bureaus so corrections
can be made to the information in the complainant's file.
Once its investigation is complete, the credit reporting
bureau must notify the borrower of the results in writing.
If the dispute led the credit reporting bureau to correct
the mistake, the bureau must also provide the borrower a
free copy of the corrected credit report. (Note: A corrected
credit report does not count as the borrower's annual free
report.) If an item is changed or deleted, the credit report-
ing bureau cannot put the disputed information back in
the borrower's file unless the creditor verifies that the
information is accurate and complete. The credit bureau
also must send the borrower written notice that includes
the creditor's name, address and phone number.
If the credit reporting bureau's investigation does not
resolve a borrower's dispute, the borrower may request
that a statement of the dispute be included in his or her
file and in future credit reports. Borrowers may also ask
the credit bureau to provide the dispute statement to any-
one who previously received a copy of the report. Credit
bureaus may charge a fee for this service.
When negative information in a credit report is accu-
rate and correctly includes a deficiency in the borrower's
payment history, that negative information will remain
on the books for seven years. Bankruptcies are included
for 10 years, while information about unpaid judgments
against the borrower can be reported for seven years - or
until the statute of limitations expires, whichever is lon-
ger. Borrowers with negative items on their credit report
should be wary of advertisements promising to wipe credit
reports clean, because there is not a legal way to remove
accurately reported negative information.
If a credit reporting agency or creditor refuses to correct
inaccurate, incomplete or outdated information, Texans
should file a complaint with the Texas Attorney General's
Office or the Federal Trade Commission.
Greg Abbott is the Attorney General of Texas. Comments
about this column may be e-mailed to edior@Sweetwa-
ter repo rter.co m.
OTPOURRI
Watch your mail - you may be a winner!
The deluge of catalogs that
descends on us at Christmas
is second only to the one with
end of the year / first
of the year catalogs.
In addition, various
individuals and com-
panies are clamoring
that, if we will only
do the paperwork, we
are assured to win a
sweepstakes that will
solve all our prob-
lems. It is enough to
make one not check
the mail, which can
be extremely danger-
ous.
Many years ago,
the County Attorney's
Office started working with
merchants to collect bad
checks. Part of the process
involves sending a letter from
the office to the check writer,
offering the opportunity to
pay the check. Our letter-
head at that time was white.
When the complaints started
coming in that the recipi-
ent did not receive or notice
our letter. In an effort to be
more noticeable (but no less
professional) we switched
to an ivory letterhead and
envelope. Amazingly, we still
receive the same complaints
today.
The holidays are a prime
time for the writing of bad
checks. In fact, the epidemic
becomes so bad that some
merchants who normally
accept checks will not do so
during this time, or require
extra identifying information
at that time. In the search
for the "perfect gift", many
people visit craft fairs, "trade
days" and flea markets.
Their checks may be written
somewhere other than their
county of residence, broad-
ening the scope of the prob-
lem about to hit.
As a rule, people who write
bad checks are at least some-
what disorganized. While
they may believe that they
can carry their balance men-
tally, many have never actu-
ally balanced a checkbook.
They actually are not aware
of the balance of their check-
GUEST COLUMN
iisa
Peterson
ing account, nor of the fact
that it is overdrawn. They are
probably not even aware that
the address on their
checks is no longer
accurate, which will
exacerbate the prob-
lem.
Once all the hot
checks are returned
to the merchant,
most proceed to send
letters (they need no
longer be certified)
to the check writers
requiring that resti-
tution be paid with-
in a matter of days.
State law allows
merchants to add a
fee to the face value of the
check, and most will do so.
The letter will be sent to the
writer at the address on the
check. If that address is no
longer correct, the merchant
has no duty to search for
another one. In most cases,
the mail is not forwarded,
but returned to the sender as
undeliverable. If the check
writer fails to respond to
the letter, or fails to pay the
amount requested, the mer-
chant can, and normally will,
turn the check over for pros-
ecution.
It is quite common for peo-
ple arrested for writing bad
checks to complain that they
have not been given notice. As
a courtesy, most prosecutors
will send either a letter (by
first class mail) or a post card
to the check writer informing
them that they have ten days
to take care of the check or
face criminal charges. (This
notice will also give notice of
the additional fee imposed
by the prosecutor's office for
collecting the check. Now
the writer is looking at the
face value + $30 + at least
$15!) These notices are sent
to the address on the check,
because that is normally
the only one available. If
the writer is in the prosecu-
tor's database already (not a
good sign!), a more current
address may be found and
used. As long as the address
is one that has been correct
in the past, the check writer
is considered to have been
given notice.
In most circumstances,
check writers are given notice
that their check was dishon-
ored by their banking insti-
tution. When balancing an
account, it is not uncommon
to be missing a check, but
there should be an increased
service charge for having had
a "bounce". Sadly, many of
the people arrested on war-
rants for bad checks have
been "missing" an account-
ing for the particular check
for several months. The fact
that the check was missing in
that many bank statements
should be a red flag.
It is also quite common
for a now former spouse to
receive the blame for the dis-
honored check. Invariably, he
or she has refused to forward
mail, to release information
about the account, or cleaned
it out before the accused was
aware of the action. There
are few couples who manage
to split their assets without at
least some rancor. Perhaps
the wisest course, when
faced with a split between
two account holders, is for
at least one to visit the bank
and remove himself /herself
from the account. At the
very least, if continuing to
write checks but not seeing
the bank statement, take the
time to check with the bank
on a regular basis to insure
that the balance is positive.
Most prosecutors across
the state are willing to work
with check writers who will
contact them prior to a war-
rant being issued. Once an
order for arrest has been
issued, their patience tends
to be considerably shorter.
Sadly, it is not uncommon
for one check writer to be the
subject of warrants in three
or four counties. While the
prosecutors maybe willing to
consolidate the cases, there
is no requirement that they
do so. As a result, a check
writer living in Nolan County
will probably have a warrant
from the here; if they shop in
Abilene, there will be a war-
rant from there, as writing
a bad check is a crime, and
crimes must be prosecuted in
the county where they took
place. If the person stopped
at a craft fair or trade day
in the metroplex, there may
also be a warrant from Dallas
or Tarrant County.
So far, the "record holder"
in our office was an indi-
vidual facing theft by check
warrants from ten counties.
Even though the cases were
eventually consolidated for
the purpose of collecting res-
titution, she was required to
post bond on each of those
cases. The lowest bond was
$500, and I believe that the
total she gave the bonds-
man was $ 15OO. From
there, she had to take the
time off work to appear in
each of the courts on these
matters, traveling about the
state to the various "scenes
of the crime." With the aid
of an attorney who was court
appointed from here, all the
cases were rolled together
into one conviction through
the Nolan County Court At
Law. She was given a fine,
had to pay court costs, and
full restitution on the checks
from the other counties as
well as the ones here. She
was placed on Community
Supervision (probation) for
a period of time at $40 per
month, over 100 hours of
community service, month-
ly reports and all the other
requirements placed on any
other person.
Most people convicted of
theft by check are individu-
als normally believed to be
"criminals", yet their conduct
has caused them to develop a
criminal record for a crime
of moral turpitude. Of all
the misdemeanors in the law
books, this is one of the most
avoidable - just by checking
the mail.
Lisa Peterson is the County
Attorney for Nolan County.
Comments about this column
may be e-mailed to editor@
sweetwaterreporter.com
Iowa Caucuses and New Hampshire Primaries
Right now, not just the
media but a large part of
the nation is focused on the
Iowa Caucuses and the New
Hampshire primary. Since
Iowa is the first "open sup-
port" for a particular
candidate," and the
New Hampshire pri-
mary quickly follows,
naturally, every four
years, we hear a lot
about Iowa and New
Hampshire. Since
Iowa nas a total pop-
ulation just a tittle
larger than the num-
ber of people living in
Chicago Illinois, and
New Hampshire has
fewer people than
San Antonio Texas,
politically we don't
hear a lot from them
between Presidential
elections. You know.
that's not quite fair, Chicago
has a population between
the two states and we hear
about Chicago politics all
the time. Maybe a better
way to say it would be since
the politics in Iowa and New
Hampshire are not largely
run by crooks, between
Presidential elections, those
two states just go about their
(political) business quietly.
This year there is more
concern than normal
because whoever ultimately
(Iowa and New Hampshire
don't necessarily go to the
person who winds up with
the nomination) wins the
2012 Republican nomina-
tion is going to have to run
against Barack Obama.
While the main stream
media runs opinion piece
after opinion piece (not very
well disguised as "news sto-
ries") touting the (according
to them) "fact" that Obama
is going to be hard to beat
and the Republicans have
a weak field of potential
nominees to choose from,
as usual, they are missing
(intentionally in my opin-
ion) the real story.
First of all, Obama is
imminently defeatable.
If it weren't for help from
the leftist media combined
with the number of people
who depend on the fed-
eral government for sup-
port (entitlement program
or otherwise), even the
Democrats would be rooting
for the eventual Republican
nominee. Ilmmm, maybe
some of them are already
but don't want to publicly
admit it. If they are, they
should be careful with thai
kind of thinking, it could
lead to using logic and origi-
nal thoughts, you know, the
9
3
Bruce
Kreitler
road to conservatism.
Secondly, and since I real-
ly want to see The Obama
gone it pains me to say this,
the most important qual-
ify of whoever ends up as
the Republican
nominee isn't just
whether he or she
can defeat Obama.
By the way, I do
know that as far
as conservatives
go, and I am one,
what I just said is
almost neresy
Before I go on,
let me say that
Obama needs
to go. I have no
doubt he's the
worst President
the United States
has ever had, or
ever will have.
His policies have
been and are nothing but
destructive and divisive. In
my opinion he has single
handedly set race relations
in this country back decades
(being able to cause more
damage than A1 Sharpton
and Jessie Jackson is saying
something). He has over-
spent (wasted) amounts
of money that are almost
beyond understanding. Even
if ne leaves now, repairing
the economic harm result-
ing from his administration,
just up to today, is going to
"take longer to do than I have
left to live (despite what my
kids say, I'm not that old).
As "much as I think
Obama needs to go, that
is be defeated by the even-
tual Republican (and the
more conservative the bet-
ter) nominee, merely boot-
ing The Barack through the
(White House) door, isn't
lay itself going to be all that
helpful. Not to say that
it isn't an important first
step to regaining control of
a runaway federal govern-
ment, but"sadly, just chang-
ing Obama for someone
better isn't enough. While
de-electing The Barack and
replacing him with near-
ly anybody else will be a
step in the right direction,
ment. Whoever wins the
Republican nomination
cannot do our country much
good if all they are is the "not
Barack Obama". We need to
overturn Obamacare, restore
relations with our allies,
regain our spot as the worlds
lone superpower (unless you
think China will do a better
job at it), eliminate whole
government bureaucracies,
restore America to the land
of opportunity, invigorate
the economy, and on and
on and on. Do you really
think one lone person, be
they President or not, could
accomplish all of that with-
out help? A new president,
no matter how conserva-
tive and well intentioned,
could not right our wrongs
by themselves anymore
than Barack Obama has
done all the damage he has
without a lot of cooperation
from other politicians. Just
as a reminder, think Harry
Reid, Nancy Polosi, Charles
Schumer, Barney Frank,
and company.
What's most important
about whoever winds up
as the Republican nominee
is how long their coat tails
are. Just as Ronald Reagan
won in a Republican land-
slide and brought large
numbers of Republicans
into office all the way down
to the municipal level with
him, that's wiiat we need
from the Republican nomi-
nee. Even tliough Ronald
Reagan never enjoyed com-
lele Republican control of
'ongress during his admin-
istration, he was still able to
create the "Reagan revolu-
tion" and accomplish a lot
of good (the final defeat of
the Soviet Union and the
end of the cold war for one)
because he enjoyed broad
based support of his policies
beyond just the House and
the Senate.
Often in the past, divided
government has worked out
to the overall benefit of the
United States. Think how
differently the Clinton years
would have turned out if
p]
0
Bill Clinton had not had to
deal with the "Contract for
America". While Clinton is
often credited with welfare
reform, balanced budgets,
budget surpluses (at least
on paper), I doubt seriously
that would have happened
without stiff opposition from
House Republicans (led by
Gingrich).
Despite the fact that a
federal government divided
on party lines has worked
in the past, we now find
ourselves in a position of
needing aggressive, unheard
of changes- to the way we
do business. That's not the
kind of thing we are going
to get from either a divid-
ed government, or a weak
President with little support
outside of Washington D.C.
To get the kind of leadership
and changes that we need
is going to require a strong
candidate who can ignite
the kind of support from
the citizens of the United
States that will result in a
large influx of the conser-
vative leaders our govern-
ment needs from top to bot-
tom. That is the goal that
Republican nominee should
have fixed firmly in their
sights (I'm a conservative,
I can use a gun reference),
whoever it turns out to be.
Bruce Kreitler is the
author of Obamageddon
(the Culmination "of the
Progressive Looting
of America) and posts
this and other articles at
B111ceKreitler.com.
there are so many big poli-
cy changes that need to be
made, that what we need
in the coming election cycle
is a fundamental, genera-
tional shift in the makeup of
our government(s) all the
way down to the municipal
level.
A complete change in the
type of people who make
up our government is what's
going to be needed to re-
invent (back to what it was
meant to be) our govern-
The SWEETWATER REPORTER
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Correction Policy
Editorial:
As a matter of policy, the
Sweetwater Reporter will
publish corrections of errors
in fact that have been print-
ed in the newspaper.
The corrections will be
made as soon as possible
after the error has been
brought to the attention of
the newspaper's editor at
236-6677.
Advertising:
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to reject, edit or cancel any
advertising at any time with-
out liability. Publisher's liabil-
ity for error is limited to the
amount paid for advertising.
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__ Sweetwater
Reporter
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Sweetwater Reporter (Sweetwater, Tex.), Vol. 113, No. 353, Ed. 1 Sunday, January 8, 2012, newspaper, January 8, 2012; Sweetwater, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth229656/m1/4/: accessed May 1, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Sweetwater/Nolan County City-County Library.