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House wants counties to be able to take legal action against debtors

If a county where you don’t live has a claim to recover a debt from you, that county’s conciliation court would have jurisdiction in a civil action, under a bill the House passed 124-1 Friday.

The House first adopted an amendment by Rep. Dave Pinto (DFL-St. Paul) requiring notification of the defendant by first-class mail. Pinto’s amendment also would exclude human services overpayments from the kind of debts counties could pursue in this way.

As amended, HF1770, sponsored by Rep. Dennis Smith (R-Maple Grove), now goes to the Senate, where Sen. Matt Schmit (DFL-Red Wing) is the sponsor.

Current law restricts a county to taking legal action against non-residents only in the case of certain types of debt, including student loans, rent and bad checks.


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