Consumer Bankruptcy Rate Up in 3 States

WASHINGTON - Almost two years after lawmakers amended the U.S. Bankruptcy Code to reduce filing rates, several regions in the Southeast continue to see elevated numbers of consumer bankruptcy cases, a phenomenon some experts attribute in part to local culture.

Bankruptcy numbers over the past few months appear to be slowing down or leveling off in many regions. More than 73 percent of the nation's federal court districts saw bankruptcy filings drop between May and June, according to Jupiter eSources, a company that tracks bankruptcy data. But bankruptcies continue to climb or remain elevated in the three highest-filing states in the country - Tennessee, Georgia and Alabama.

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