JULIE CARR SMYTH, Associated Press

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The three main credit reporting agencies in the U.S. have struck a multistate settlement agreement that requires them to move more quickly to fix disputed information on credit reports, wait longer before adding items and more carefully scrutinize certain data they’re furnished by collection agencies and others.

Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine announced the pact among Equifax, Experian, TransUnion and attorneys general in 31 states Wednesday. It requires the agencies to pay $6 million and change certain business practices over the next three years.

DeWine says he initiated an investigation after a 2012 investigation by The (Columbus) Dispatch uncovered that consumers had been denied car loans, house loans and even jobs because of mistakes on their credit reports.

He called the reporting system fundamentally flawed.

Besides Ohio, states in the settlement were Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont and Wisconsin.