Officials in the Utah attorney general's office say they are using the National Association of Attorney Generals to survey how other states are handling problems with mortgage abuse.

Dave Thomas, chief deputy for Attorney General Paul Van Dam, said officials already have contacted Texas and have learned that complaints were filed there similar to those in Utah."They (Texas officials) are not sure they have enough to file legal action," Thomas said.

He said Van Dam will wait until information has been compiled before deciding what, if any, action to take.

Meanwhile, Van Dam will soon open a new division to deal solely with consumer fraud and white collar crimes. Thomas said the division, which likely will open in June, will be formed without costing taxpayers more and without taking attorneys away from other divisions.

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"We are filling some vacancies and getting a federal grant the previous administration let lapse," he said. "We're also taking an attorney who had been a floater and are putting him in the new division."

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