Daniel Boone Regional Library

Databases

• Consumer Reports
  Consumer Reports features unbiased ratings and recommendations on thousands of products and services in categories including appliances, cars, electronics and computers, home and garden, health and fitness, babies and kids, food, personal finance, and travel.
  
• EBSCO
  This magazine database allows you to search by topic and limit to specific dates, publications or full text.
  (Example: looking for information on buying a lawn mower. Find: lawn mowers evaluation. Limit: Full Text. Publication: Consumer Reports. The results will be full text articles displayed by date newest to oldest. Although generally current, note that EBSCO is several months behind loading the full text version of some magazines such as Consumer Reports.)
• InfoTrac – General OneFile
  This magazine database allows you to search by topic and limit to specific dates, publications or full text.

Local

• Ashland
  City of Ashland information includes government, events, maps, services, schools, utilities and more.
• Centralia
  Comprehensive site for information on City of Centralia: administration, boards, commissions, economic development, utilities and much more.
• Columbia
  Complete information on Columbia as a place to live and work. Site includes population, demographics, schools, universities, local businesses, maps, and much more.
• Columbia Energy Audit
  Free energy audits are available to all Columbia Water & Light customers.
• Columbia Utilities
  Consumer information for utilities in Columbia: includes payment options and utility assistance programs.
• Home Performance with Energy Star - Columbia
  This program is available to Columbia Water & Light residential electric customers who are remodeling their homes to be more energy efficient. Home Performance program parameters must be followed to qualify for rebates and a Home Performance Loan.
• Columbia and Boone County – Ratings of Food Service Locations
  Health Department inspection ratings of all food service establishments in Columbia and Boone County. Ratings include convenience stores, daycares, grocery stores, restaurants, schools and taverns.
• Fulton
  City of Fulton provides information on departments, employment, government, history, parks and utilities.
• Holts Summit
  City of Holts Summit includes information on government, city code, commissions, departments and contacts.
• Boone Electric Cooperative
  Boone Electric Cooperative serves Boone, southern Randolph, and portions of Callaway, Howard, Audrain and Monroe Counties.

State

• Missouri Attorney General’s Office
  Consumer Protection Hotline -1-800-392-8222
  Comprehensive site for consumer information, programs and publications. Missouri NO Call law allows Missourians to reduce unwanted telemarketing calls made to their homes by signing up for the No Call List. Information on consumer programs include: Check a Charity, Consumer Complaints, Safeguarding Seniors, Computer Phishing Scams and Product Recalls. The Know MO program is a searchable list of complaints the Attorney General’s Office has received about individuals or businesses.
• Missouri Division of Finance
  Missouri Division of Finance handles complaints concerning mortgage bankers, debt collection and harassment, credit bureaus, finance companies and state banks. Consumer pamphlets include: identity theft, free credit reports, debt collection, reverse mortgages, fair credit billing, mortgage loans and disputing credit errors.
• Missouri Department of Insurance
  (800) 726-7390 - Comprehensive site for the Missouri Department of Finance handles complaints against insurance companies and will verify credentials of insurance agents. This site provides a vast amount of information on consumer issues: auto, homeowners, health, life & annuities, long-term care, seniors, vehicle service contracts and workers compensation insurance.
• Missouri Public Service Commission
  (800) 392-4211 - The Missouri Public Service Commission regulates investor-owned electric, natural gas, water and sewer and telephone companies. The Commission will investigate complaints against public utilities including service problems, overcharges and manufactured housing defects.
• Missouri Secretary of State
  (800) 721-7996 - Missouri Investor Protection Center has been established for reporting complaints or making inquiries about brokers, agents, investment advisers, adviser representatives or general securities violations.  This site includes investment publications, savings calculator and much more.
• Utility Cold Weather Rule
  Missouri Cold Weather Rule prohibits disconnection of utility service November 1 through March 31 to registered low-income elderly or disabled customers. This site includes detailed information concerning utility customer’s rights and Missouri Community Action Agencies that offer assistance for heating bills.

Regional and National

• Better Business Bureau - St. Louis Bureau
  The St. Louis Bureau provides service for Boone and Callaway Counties. The Better Business Bureau handles formal complaints about businesses and offers a free consumer arbitration service to settle disputes between businesses and consumers.
• Consumer Reports
  Consumer Reports site has some detailed consumer information, but requires an individual subscription to access their complete articles and ratings. Visit the DBRL library facilities for current print issues of Consumer Reports.
• Consumer Search
  This comprehensive website covers nearly 800 product categories that contain reviews and articles on consumer products. They include automotive, electronics, home products, health and fitness products, kitchen and food products, photo and video products, software reviews and sports and leisure reviews and much more.
• Federal Citizen Information Center
  Includes the Consumer Information Catalog which offers free or low cost information on a wide variety of consumer issues. Basic information on Federal programs and agencies is also available and translated into over 25 languages.

Consumer Alerts and Recalls

• U. S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
  Consumer Product Safety Commission was established to protect the public from risks associated with consumer products. This site includes product safety alerts, recalls and a Product Incident Report Form.
• Recalls.gov
  This is the comprehensive site for all government recalls. Six federal agencies have joined to provide recall information for consumer products, motor vehicles, boats, food, medicine, cosmetics and environmental products. The site is also available in Spanish.

Credit Information and Identity Theft

• Credit Cards
  A comprehensive site for credit card information allows you to compare rates of all major credit cards.
• Credit Reports
  (877) 322-8228 - The official free website to help consumers obtain a copy of their credit report.This site allows an individual to request a free credit report once every 12 months from each of the nationwide consumer credit reporting companies: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.
• Missouri Attorney General - Credit Repair
  Missouri Attorney General’s publication on credit repair and how to avoid becoming a victim of credit repair scams.
• Missouri Division of Finance - Consumer Pamphlets
  Missouri Division of Finance consumer pamphlets include: identity theft, free credit reports, debt collection, reverse mortgages, fair credit billing, mortgage loans and disputing credit errors.
• Credit Repair & Debt
  Credit repair article from Nolo Press, a respected publisher of legal self-help books.
  Topics include credit and debit cards, dealing with creditors, repaying debts and student loans.
• Identity Theft
  Find out how to protect against identity theft and what to do if you are already a victim.
• Federal Trade Commission – Deter Identify Theft
  Federal Trade Commission publication offers specific steps to “Deter, Detect and Defend” against identity theft.

Energy Star

• Energy Star
  Complete information about Energy Star Products, Home Improvement, Commercial Building and much more about energy conserving options. Energy Star KIDS is a cool
  site for kids to learn all about energy conservation and how they can help.
• Missouri Department of Natural Resources – Energy Star
• “City is skeptical of green tax break” (January 20, 2009)
  Article in Columbia Daily Tribune about the City of Columbia and whether it will adopt a Missouri tax holiday on qualifying Energy Star purchases.

Unwanted Mail and No-Call List

• Catalog Choice
  Catalog choice is a free service that lets you decline paper catalogs you no longer wish to receive.
• Direct Marketing Association’s Mail Preference Service
  This site is supported by the U. S. Postal Service allows an individual to remove his or her name from direct marketing lists, email lists and prescreened credit offers. Information about sweepstakes, mail or telephone shopping and a large section for parents on Internet safety is also available.
• Missouri No Call
  (866) 662-2551 - The No Call law allows Missourians to reduce unwanted telemarketing calls made to their homes by signing up for the No Call list, which is managed by the Attorney General's Office. There is no cost to get on the list.

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