Attorney General's News Release

February 29, 2008

Nixon says National Consumer Protection Week provides opportunity for consumers to increase financial savvy

Jefferson City, Mo. — The observance of the 10th annual National Consumer Protection Week (NCPW) from March 2-8 is a reminder to Missourians that plenty of free resources are available to them to become or remain financially savvy, Attorney General Jay Nixon said today. The Attorney General’s Office is the primary consumer protection agency for Missourians, and returned more than $18 million to consumers in 2007 through legal action and informal mediation.

Nixon said his office was one of a broad group of federal, state, and local government agencies and national consumer advocacy organizations that use NCPW to highlight consumer education efforts in the fight against fraud in communities across the nation. The theme of this year’s NCPW is “Financial Literacy – A Sound Investment.” The event’s organizers encourage people from coast to coast to fortify their financial know-how, because financially savvy consumers are more likely to make smarter decisions about managing their money, using credit wisely, and building a solid financial foundation.

“Over the last several years, we’ve made a wide range of consumer education tools available on our Web site, ago.mo.gov, including our consumer blog, several quizzes, online complaint forms, and more than 30 of our publications,” Nixon said. “Our Web site had more than 1 million hits last month, so Missourians have shown they’re eager to find out how to protect themselves from consumer fraud.”

National organizers of this year’s NCPW are the Federal Trade Commission, the Federal Citizen’s Information Center, the U.S. Postal Service, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Federal Communications Commission, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Comptroller of the Currency, the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the National Association of Consumer Agency Administrators, the National Consumers League, AARP, the Better Business Bureau, Call for Action, the Consumer Federation of America, and the National Association of Attorneys General.

Missourians can learn more from the Attorney General’s Office about consumer protection by going to Nixon’s Web site, ago.mo.gov. For more information about NCPW, visit consumer.gov/ncpw.

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Inquiries from consumers should be directed to consumer@ago.mo.gov or 1-800-392-8222 (from within Missouri) or 573-751-3321 (outside Missouri).

All media inquiries should be directed to Press Secretary John Fougere.

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