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Show March 19, 1997 Salina SunGunnison Valley News Page 3 Off the top Deadlines How You Can Avoid Fraud Congress estimates that Ameri- cans lose more than $100 billion dollars each year to fraud. However, you can greatly reduce your risk of falling victim to fraud if you follow these simple rules whenever someone wants you to buy a product or service or donate to a charity. 1 . If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is! 2. Never buy or contribute at the time of the sales pitch-w- ait at least 72 hours before making a decision. Remember, con artists will try to pressure you into a quick decision. 3. Give yourself time to do your homework on the company. Insist that they provide you with written material about the company Discuss the offer with a trusted friend, family member, or financial advisor. Check the company out with the appropriate government agency, the Better Business Bureau, and applicable trade association. 4. Never send money through a courier. 5. Never give your credit card or banking information to someone over the telephone unless you made the call and you know the company is legitimate. Disclosing your checking account number or credit card number to someone you know little or nothing about is particularly dangerous because once con artists have it, they can access and withdraw funds from your account. Written by Jeff Gray, Assistant Attorney General by Lori Olsen I hate deadlines. I am in the wrong business. Newspapers and deadlines... well, are like curb and gutter. I have an accounting background. More deadlines. April 15th is coming all too fast. I still haven't finished my tax return even when I promised myself this would be the year I could file before the deadline. I have gathered all the tax junk. I have printed out the schedules and transaction summaries from our computer. I even sat down in early Febru- ary to guesstimate the bottom line.. .How much do we owe this year? But, I will probably put the "thorn in my side" off until about April 15. I am a deadline oriented person. But that doesn't mean I have to like it. I say I am deadline oriented... it really means wait until the last minute to get things done. I procrastinate. I live from one crisis to the next. I handle a tough situation and I put off the next battle as long as possible. I would love to sit down at the sewMillie Jensen holds the commendation from President Clinton. ing machine and make a dress for my daughter. I have the pattern and material laying out on the kitchen table. What I need is a deadline to get the Millie Jensen met the mailman on nam War. Major Jensen was honored job done. Now, if my daughter had a special occasion .... I finished the last Tuesday, March 1, expecting her by the Vietnam Government, as a reI made for her 20 minutes bedress the also He was Star. Silver usual mail. of cipient What she received was a big honored by the U.S. Army with the fore the school Christmas program. When I am in charge of a church Bronze Star. He retired front the milibrown envelope with a commendation signed by William J. Clinton, Presi- tary service and they moved back to activity, I drive everyone crazy, because I wait until the last moment to dent of the United States. Salina nearly 15 years ago. take care of my responsibilities. Sorry, is The commendation was for her Salina. Jensen native a of Major husband, Maj. Hubert J. Jensen, a Millie is often stopped on the street it is who I am. three-wveteran who passed away on and asked Is Hubert Jensen your husSometimes, I even miss deadlines. December 21, 1996. band? He was nty paperboy when he I baked my son's birthday cake the day The certificate reads The United was a young man. Jensen said that he after his birthday. I remember to get States honors the memory of Hubert started with the Deseret News when the deposit to the bank about 10 minJ. Jensen. This certificate is awarded he was eight years old, and kept the utes after they close. I regularly walk by a grateful nation in recognition of paper route until he graduated from into church 10 minutes late. But my devoted and selfless consecration to North Sevier High School. During that lesson is freshly prepared. I haven't the service of our country in the time he was awarded a bicycle, and always been this way. As Armed Forces of the United States. two Winchester rifles, for service a busy college student, I arrived at my Jensen says her husband joined above the call of duty. The guns are appointments and meetings at least 5 minutes early. I lived by my day planthe Navy just before World War II, and cherished by his children and ner. I scheduled walks, time to read, the before the Korean Army joined and visiting with friends. War. He also served during the Viet 1 How can I protect myself from credit card fraud? by Liz Gorham, USU Extension Family Resource Management Specialist The average person carries nine credit cards, according to the Bankcard Holders of America. The more cards you have, the more you are at risk for credit card fraud. To help decide how many you feel you can safely carry, multiply your number of cards by $50, which is the maximum amount you are liable per card if they are lost or stolen. Also, you must act responsibly within two business days to notify the company of your loss. Keep a list of all credit card account numbers, their expiration dates and 800 numbers in a safe, accessible location for quick reporting if cards are lost or stolen. If something happens and you are unaware of the misuse or loss of your credit card, there is no time limit for reporting unauthorized charges. However, you must notify the credit card company in writing of the unauthorized charges. Be as detailed as possible in the letter about the dates of your last use of the card. Keep a copy of the letter and note the date mailed. Mail it using return receipt requested. By law, the credit card issuer must advise you of the results of their investigation within 30 days. Send a copy of the report to both your local Better Business Bureau and the Better Business Bureau in the city of your credit card company. This same procedure should be followed if you wish to cancel an account. Simply cutting up the card does not communicate your wishes to the credit card issuer. In your letter, be sure to request verification that the account has been closed and the date of closure. Finally, be sure to save all credit card receipts and keep a record of any phone transactions. When the credit card bill arrives, match receipts with your record of purchases. Question items not accounted for in the bill before making the payment. FCC provides phone users information about slamming and complaints 01 , The words may not be part of your everyday vocabular- y- slamming, operator service providers (Sops), information services. Yet 63 percent of all consumer telephone-relate- d complaints handled by the FCC during the most recent re- ' 1 Public benefits from Public Lands against slamming offenders. The second largest category of complaints involved the rates and services of operator service providers (BLM) (Sops) -t- he companies that provide interstate long distance service from or pay phones and phones in other pubporting period alleged slamming lic locations. problems with Sops or information In response to a large number of services. f To help consumers protect them-- , consumer complaints about high rates selves -- and to alert the industry to charged by some of these companies, FCCs Common Carrier the FCC has proposed additional rules problems-t- he to protect consumers against excessive Bureau has compiled a Scorecard that provides information consumers OSP rates and charges. need to make informed decisions about Consumer complaints about inforservices. such as sports mation services telephone-relate- d The Scorecard includes an scores, psychic readers, and chat lines -- - ranked third. analysis of how telephone companies Consumers are protected from performed and the types of telephone-relate- d complaints and inquiries filed deceptive information service call practices by federal law and FCC and by consumers with FCC. It also includes valuable consumer tips on how Federal Trade Commission rules. The Scorecard offers tips on to avoid pitfalls when selecting a telecommunications company and what to how companies can significantly redo if problems occur. duce consumer complaints filed The FCC tracks trends in conagainst them by consumers. Some sugsumer telephone-relate- d complaints to gestions include providing consumers develop policies and rules to protect more information about their services, consumers. improving overall customer service In 995, the largest complaint catprograms, and maintaining better billwhen a ing and service records. egory involved slamming The Scorecard can be browsed consumers chosen long distance com- pany is changed to another company and downloaded from the Internet: without the consumers knowledge or http:www.fcc.govBureaus Common Carrier Reports consent. score card 95.html The Scorecard provides an look into the FCCs rules and policies to protect consumers against slamming and includes information full-tim- e, Wednesday. Deadlines drive me. I slack off and do things like play the piano, talk to my kids, watch TV, sleep, clean the house, do laundry, shuttle kids, romance my husband, putter in the yard, play, etc.... until I need to get something important done. Meet a deadline. Do you call that procrastination or Is it ar about enforcement actions taken 1 ' Mailman delivers honor As a mom, when my third child was bom, I gave up trying to make all my deadlines and to be early or even on time. Then, when I started working well.... If I schedule time to read, it's the magazine by the toilet. I visit with friends at the store in the checkout line. My scheduled walks are from the house to the car and from the car to the store, the church, the school or office and back to my car. My children are growing up. They don't need to be dressed. They get breakfast on their own. I don't have to tie shoes or comb their hair. So what is my problem? I should have plenty of time to sew, do that dam tax return, and get to my appointments on time. At the newspaper office, we start putting the paper together on Monday afternoon and we stay until it's finished. I become an intense individual it done so I can go with one goal-g- et home and get some sleep! It's a big deadline! Besides, the paper needs to go to the press Tuesday morning or... well, you wouldn't have your paper on The Bureau of Land Management received This bid was also the highest per acre of bid at $180 per acre. Huntington total a Walker, Denver, Colorado, submitted a high bonus bid of $135,720 for a e parcel and also submitted a high bonus bid of $121,440 for a 1,055-acr- e parcel, both located apmiles southwest of 5 proximately Vernal, in Uintah County. Parcels not sold at the auction are available for noncompetitive fil ing on the day following the sale. On the day following the sale, the BLM received 14 noncompetitive offers on 13 parcels. A drawing is held to determine priority for parcels receiving multiple filings. Both competitive and noncompetitive leases are issued for a term and require yearly rental of $1.50 per acre for the first five years and $2 per acre thereafter. More information concerning the sale is available from the BLM State Office Public Room, 324 South State Street, 4th Floor, P.O. Box 45 55, Salt Lake City, Utah 84145-015- 5 or tele- $1,251,294.25 in bonus bids for Federal oil and gas lease rights on 48 parcels involving over 55,467 acres of land in Utah during an oral auction held on February 24, 1997, in Salt Lake City, Utah. In addition to the bonus bids, the sale netted $83,22 .50 in first year rentals and $3,600 in administrative fees, for a grand total of $1,338,115.75 in revenues from this lease sale. The State of Utah will receive 50 percent of all monies collected on the leases from this sale, in addition to any rentals paid per acre annually for the life of the leases (up to 0 years) or any royalties paid to the U.S. Government if a lease becomes productive. A total of 80 parcels were offered, totaling over 240,400 acres of land under the jurisdiction of the BLM. Bids ranged from the minimum of $2 per acre to $180 per acre and averaged $22.56 per acre. Vem Jones from Salt Lake City, submitted the phone (80 ) highest total bid in the amount of lo$301,500 for a 1,675 cated approximately 10 miles southeast of Blanding, in San Juan County. 936-acr- 1 1 1 1 12-1- ten-ye- ar 539-40- 0 1 . or maxed out frustration? I can't figure out all the underlying psychology. But I do know that deadlines... are the curbs I live by. This column is the product ofLoris rambling and often disjointed thoughts. This conversational style piece, does not reflect the opinion of this newspaper. Announcing Dr. Kimberly E. Beck's office has moved to 76 E Center in Gunnison (across the street from her former office) Dr. Beck's hours continue to be Monday, Tuesday and Thursday: 9 am to 5 pm Wednesday: Noon to 8 pm 528-79- 35 Watch for our open house acre-parc- el SASTen SALS AT Highway Patrol Lfl 010 Save Vilien Vou Buy TWO! 2 Medium report March 7, 1997 Jay Kurian, 24, of California, was near mile-po- st 35, raveling on n Sevier County. Kurian was stopped viola-io- n y Trooper Ogden for a traffic and found to be driving under the nfluence. Kurian was arrested and ooked into the Sevier County Jail for All Jeans s5 Off! All Shorts 10 Off Short Jljeve Tops 10 3UI and possession of drug parapher-laliA male passenger was also and the vehicle was impounded. March 10, 1997 Marshall Knox (aka William Lee larris), 22, of Detroit, Michigan, was 50, in Sevier raveling near mile-po- OFF a. Sale Ends March 31, 1997 Bailies st 3ounty when he was stopped by rrooper Tenney, for a traffic violation, rhe 1996 Pontiac Sunfire driven by Cnox was determined to be stolen, and le was arrested and Rooked into the I levier County Jail. ji; Receive 10 an additional 19150. Main, Gunnison Savings when your purchase is $75 or more! 528-707- 7 Call us at $9.99 528-306- 0 and we'll cook it for you! Gunnison Thriftway S. Gunnison 520 Main, I 528-306- 0 |