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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (July 20, 2011)
Page 12 The INDEPENDENT, July 20, 2011 Eat BBQ to help the library Learn how to handle debt collectors The Friends of the Banks Public Library and Burnt Ends BBQ are teaming up to cele- brate National Night Out on Tuesday, August 2, and raise money for the Banks Library. Pre-orders for BBQ beef ribs, pork ribs or chicken will be taken at the Banks Library until Wednesday, July 27. BBQ beef brisket sandwiches plus potato salad, cole slaw and BBQ beans will be available at the event in Greenville Park from 6:00 p.m. until dusk. Ribs dinners, which will feed 2-3 people and come with two sides, are available for $28, whole chicken dinners will be $18, and half-chicken dinners will be $12. Items can also be ordered a la carte. A portion of the proceeds will go to the Friends of the Banks Public Library. Governor appoints Wipper to be Washington county Circuit judge Governor Kitzhaber an- nounced, on July 8, the ap- pointment of Janelle Factora Wipper to fill the vacancy on the Washington County Circuit Court created by the appoint- ment of Judge Marco Hernan- dez to the United States District Court for the District of Oregon. She will start her new position on the court August 1, 2011. “Janelle Wipper’s diverse background, which includes both criminal and civil law, will make her an asset to the trial court,” said Governor Kitz- haber. “Her personal and pro- fessional experiences, along with her commitment to public service, will benefit the citizens of Washington County and the State of Oregon.” Ms. Wipper received her Doctor of Jurisprudence de- gree from Willamette University College of Law and her Bache- lor of Science degree from Ore- gon State University. Ms. Wip- per has been serving as Asso- ciate Chief Counsel for the Civ- il Enforcement Division of the Oregon Department of Justice and previously served as a Deputy District Attorney in Washington County for 11 years. Currently serving as President of the Washington County Bar Association, Ms. Wipper is also a member of the Oregon Women Lawyers, Ore- gon Minority Lawyers Associa- tion, and the Oregon Asian Pa- cific American Bar Association. by Jason Alderman, www.prac- ticalmoneyskills.com If you’ve ever fallen far be- hind on paying your bills, you know what it’s like to dread whenever the phone rings: What if it’s another bill collec- tor? Ignoring the call – like ig- noring a toothache – is never a good idea. Sooner or later, you’re going to have to deal with the situation. According to Gail Cunning- ham, spokesperson for the Na- tional Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC), “Our 2011 Financial Literacy Survey found that most people – 68 percent – pay their bills on time. However, 28 percent said they experience difficulty mak- ing timely bill payments.” Ideally, you should contact your lender as soon as you re- alize you may have difficulty paying a bill. They would much rather work out a repayment plan than enter the costly and time-consuming collections process. But, if that ship has al- ready sailed, here are a few precautions you can take to protect your interests: You have certain rights whenever dealing with debt collectors. For example, collec- tors cannot harass you by: • Using abusive language or threatening violence or arrest. • Calling before 8:00 a.m. or after 9:00 p.m. • Falsely representing them- selves as attorneys or govern- ment employees if they are not. • Threatening to sue you if they don’t intend to. • Contacting you at work if you tell them your employer disapproves. • Contacting others, except to verify where you live and work. • Revealing to others that you owe money. If a collection agency con- tacts you initially by phone, they must send written notice within five days stating how much you owe, the name of the creditor owed and how to file a dispute if you don’t agree. Once contacted, you should: • Get names of all persons calling and their agency, its ad- dress, phone and fax numbers. • Take detailed notes of all conversations, correspon- dence and pre-recorded calls, noting names, dates and times. • You may request that all subsequent contact be handled by mail. Send this request – and all further correspondence – by certified mail, return re- ceipt requested. • Request that all conversa- tions be followed-up in writing. • Document any false, mis- leading or harassing state- ments and include them in your correspondence. • Request full details about any debts the collector claims you owe, including dates, amounts, lender’s name, etc. • Instruct that you be the only person contacted, unless you want your attorney in- volved. • Retain all records indefi- nitely in case of future disputes. • Have all agreed-to repay- ment plan terms verified in writ- ing, including promises to re- move or adjust reports to your credit history. If you feel you’ve been tar- geted in error, tell the collection agency – in writing – that it has the wrong party and to stop contacting you. If they can’t provide proof, by law they must cease collection efforts. Unfortunately, it’s not un- common for identity thieves to run up debt in someone else’s name and to have those unpaid debts eventually go into collec- tion. That’s why it’s important to check your credit reports regu- larly and to report any errors or mistaken transactions immedi- ately. You can order one free credit report a year from each of the three main credit bu- reaus through www.annual- creditreport.com. The Privacy Rights Clearing- house’s “Debt Collection Prac- tices: When Hardball Tactics Go Too Far,” offers great tips on navigating the debt-collec- tion process, including your pri- vacy rights, sample letters and where to turn for help (www.pri- vacyrights.org/fs/fs27-debt- coll.htm). Public warned of new FBI scam Jim’s Thriftway SS 100 The Oregon Department of Justice has received numerous complaints about an email so- licitation scam. The fake email claims to be from the FBI and requests $350 from the recipi- ent to obtain a “Clearance Cer- tificate.” The email threatens to send an agent to the recipient’s home for questioning, and/or other legal sanctions if they fail to contact the Department of P IT G ATE O PENS AT 2:00 P . M . G RANDSTAND G ATE O PENS AT 3:30 P . M . Q UALIFYING S TARTS AT 5:00 P . M . R ACING S TARTS AT 6:00 P . M . S TRASSEL ’ S A UTO R EPAIR & H YDRAULIC H OSES COME TO THE RACES SATURDAY, JULY 30 TH Don’t forget to make a pit stop for Jim’s Famous Bar-B-Q Fri. & Sat. 660 So. Main, Banks • 503-324-2171 2-4-6 S PIRAL W IRE S UCTION H OSES A DAPTORS - 3/16” TO 2” A MERICAN & M ETRIC F ITTINGS B ULK O IL P RODUCTS 276 S UNSET , B ANKS 503-324-9808 Homeland Security within 24 hours in order to obtain their “Clearance Certificate.” The email also lists contact informa- tion for the FBI in Washington, D.C., and the Economic and Fi- nancial Crimes Commission in Lagos. Do not respond to these emails. They are being sent by scam artists to a large number of people with the intent of ob- taining personal or financial in- formation. Fake email solicitations – also commonly known as Nigerian email scams – are among the most common scams reported in Oregon. In 2010, international money transfer schemes were report- ed by more than 1,000 Oregon consumers. Last year, Orego- nians lost nearly $2 mil- See FBI on page 16