Do U Owe? States Want Debt Collection Rules to Apply to Texts, Cell Phones

States across the country are pushing for tougher consumer protection rules to address debt-collectors' use of cell phones and text messages, as well as better govern what happens when debts are sold on from creditors to collectors.

The same rules that guide the way debt collectors are supposed to communicate with consumers in print should also apply to text messages, cell phones and recorded messages, regulators say. In addition, people in debt can be left less protected after their accounts are sold by the original creditor to subsequent collectors (or, "passive debt buyers").

Massachusetts State Attorney General Martha Coakley has turned her attention to her state's regulations, created in the 1970s. On March 11, she issued a proposal that would change the commonwealth's policies.