A change in state law that takes effect Jan. 1 has prompted Lane County to end a program that has helped businesses recover their financial losses from people who deliberately write bad checks.

District Attorney Alex Gardner tells The Register-Guard (http://is.gd/xgkB5S) the legislative change makes the check enforcement program potentially too expensive to operate. The county program has helped businesses recover more than $250,000 in restitution from bad checks since 2004.

Several other counties offer similar check enforcement programs run by the same company used by Lane County, Ohio-based BounceBack.

Washington County District Attorney Bob Hermann says he too will end the check enforcement program that uses BounceBack. He said without a clear distinction between restitution and consumer debt, the program exposes the county to the risk of expensive litigation.