Western District of OK bankruptcy filings jump 22.4%

Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City), Jul 14, 2005 by Journal Record Staff

Bankruptcy filings at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Oklahoma increased 22.4 percent in June from a year earlier and are on pace to make 2005 a record year. In June, 1,425 bankruptcy petitions were filed at the court, up from 1,164 for June 2004 and the fourth consecutive monthly increase.

Filings for the first six months of 2005 totaled 7,878, up 10.9 percent from the first six months of 2004.

The 7,878 filings for the first six months of the year also were up 10.5 percent from 7,126 for the first six months of 2003. Filings in 2003 totaled 14,213 and were the highest for any year at the court serving 40 of Oklahoma's 77 counties. Filings at the court in 2004 were down 1.6 percent to 13,987.

Bankruptcy filings have been up sharply since March, when the U.S. Senate passed a bankruptcy bill that President Bush signed into law April 20.

The new law sets an income test for measuring a bankruptcy applicant's ability to repay debts. Those with insufficient assets or income can still file a Chapter 7 bankruptcy after the forfeiture of certain assets and have their remaining debts erased entirely. But filers with an income greater than a state's median - $35,500 in Oklahoma, according to the U.S. Census Bureau - who are able to pay at least $100 a month will instead go into Chapter 13 with a repayment plan that would include credit card charges, medical bills and various other obligations previously avoided under the bankruptcy laws.