Few things are more insulting than a bill you do not actually owe — and Colorado businesses were getting them by the mailbox-full. On September 16, 2026, Attorney General Phil Weiser announced a settlement with Corporate Certificates, LLC and FL UCC Statement Service, LLC, two companies that mailed marketing materials designed to look like official government invoices.
The trick was simple and sleazy. The mailers lacked the legally required 24-point disclaimer identifying them as advertisements — Colorado law demands the mailer state, in so many words, that it is not from any government agency and that the recipient is not required to do anything. The companies also used phony deadlines suggesting businesses had a legal duty to respond. They charged 90 and 98 dollars respectively to file reports or retrieve documents that businesses can handle themselves through the Secretary of State's office.
The state says Florida resident Brian Capobianco created the two Colorado companies, and that officials warned him and the companies about the solicitation rules in May and December 2024 — and the noncompliant mailers kept coming. The companies have not operated in Colorado since August 2025, when the attorney general sought a preliminary injunction.
Under the settlement, the companies pay 150,000 dollars in refunds and fees and permanently cease all Colorado operations. Weiser's advice to every business owner: if a fee looks official, check the Secretary of State's website before paying. Suspected deceptive marketing can be reported at StopFraudColorado.gov.
It is a rare and satisfying ending for junk mail: the fake invoice writers got a real bill, and they are leaving the state. Colorado businesses can expect slightly thinner mail — and slightly thicker wallets.
The case is a useful reminder that official-looking mail is a design choice, not a credential. Colorado's law is unusually specific — 24-point type, exact disclaimer language, no fake deadlines — precisely because this scam is so common. If your business gets a bill you did not expect, spend thirty seconds on the Secretary of State's website before spending ninety dollars on a stamp of approval you never needed.