Even before the COVID-19 pandemic forced so many people out of their jobs, more than 40 percent of West Virginians already had a debt that was in collections. Most of those debts were due to medical expenses.
People in our state are struggling severely. That’s why our state government needs to take immediate action to stop debt collectors from seizing or garnishing funds received through the recently passed CARES Act.
Payments to individuals under this federal law are intended to help people pay for food, medicine, rent and other basic necessities. Unless our state government acts quickly to bar collectors from garnishing the Economic Impact Payments, then funds that were intended to help people and local economies survive will instead end up in the pockets of creditors.
Last week, ACLU-WV joined a coalition effort headed by Mountain State Justice and including the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, West Virginia Bankers’ Association, and the National Consumer Law Center to ask Gov. Jim Justice and the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals to intervene and protect people’s payments.
Today, we learned that the Governor’s Office has asked the Court to explore its authority to limit these types of debt collection activities, and that the Court is already reviewing the matter.
We can’t cry victory just yet, but this is an encouraging sign that the Court will act to protect these vital resources for struggling West Virginians.