As your County Attorney, I'm always concerned about the negative impact of bad checks passed to local businesses. Millions of dollars are lost every year by merchants as a result of this ongoing problem. Bad checks affect everyone in terms of higher consumer costs that must be passed on to offset losses, and increased taxes to cover the additional costs for law enforcement and prosecution.

In an effort to combat this problem, the Bad Check Restitution Program has been organized to assist local merchants with bad check losses. The primary goal of the program is to obtain full restitution for the victim without adding to the financial burden of the criminal justice system.

The Bad Check Restitution Program operates in conjunction with American Corrective Counseling Services as a unique, cooperative effort between the private and public sectors. Merchants in Dubuque County benefit because they receive restitution without paying any collection fees. First time bad check offenders are given the opportunity to avoid criminal prosecution by attending a mandatory, eight-hour intervention class, in addition to paying restitution. All of this accomplished without any cost to the taxpayers.

Your interest and participation in this special program will benefit all law-abiding citizens and help your business improve its bottom line!