Less than a week ago, I reported that the Washington State Attorney General's Office had processed half a dozen complaints against Bellevue online payment and registration company Count Me In. But a lot has changed in the past six days, including a number of articles exposing lost funds at other youth soccer, lacrosse and baseball programs across the country.

As of this afternoon, the official complaint tally with the Attorney General stood at 31. Spokeswoman Kristin Alexander said the number "changes every minute" as complaints arrive from all over the country, including seven so far today. The media attention -- Alexander has fielded reporter calls from New Jersey, Alaska, California and Washington state -- is having an impact as organizations uncover that they too are allegedly owed money.

Meanwhile, youth sports directors continue to be baffled by the situation, especially those who were utilizing the Count Me In service as recently as a few days ago to accept registrations.

Sam Kaiser of Santa Barbara Pony Baseball said he planned to file a complaint with the Attorney Generals in Washington and California later this week over $12,000 in missing registration fees. Kaiser said he was "livid" because the baseball league, which offers scholarships to disadvantaged youth, was using the Count Me In system as recently as this week to collect registrations. It turned on the online registration system late last month after a lawsuit had already been filed against the company in New Jersey by a soccer club, Kaiser said.

"...The sad thing is, Terry Drayton knew he was in trouble…yet he continued to take funds from our organization and others. He’s picking the pocket of children and their families during difficult times…and that is unconscionable," said Kaiser, whose league discovered the situation Monday and disabled the Count Me in services.

Count Me In sent an email to some organizations -- Kaiser said he didn't receive a copy -- yesterday notifying them that the credit card transaction system was being turned off.

As a small league with about 400 kids involved, Kaiser said that $12,000 in missing funds will hurt the organization's ability to operate. "That is a slap upside the head. That is tough," he said.

Alexander declined to comment on whether the Attorney General was investigating the case or whether other government agencies were involved.

Chuck Harwood, regional director for the Federal Trade Commission, was familiar with the situation. But he too declined to comment about whether the federal agency was pursuing the matter.