ST. PAUL, Minn. — Ken Vierling worked hard to become top salesman at a printing company. He lived a good life and tucked away money for retirement.

Then came a change in ownership, which erased his job some 18 months ago.

Vierling ended up in a job that pays 25 percent less. He fell behind on his bills. Collectors started calling, threatening to repossess his home and his Ford Explorer.

Vierling, 49, of Fridley, Minn., began thinking about filing for bankruptcy at the beginning of the year when he realized he wouldn't be able to pay his taxes.

His first stop, dictated by the new bankruptcy law that took effect last fall, was credit counseling to review his finances and consider repayment options. He wasn't impressed with the counseling that was offered.

"It was very vague," said Vierling, who filled out an online counseling questionnaire in less than an hour. "I didn't get any real benefit out of it. It basically brought forward things I already knew."

And it didn't suggest a better alternative than filing for bankruptcy court protection, which he did four days later to restructure some $25,000 he owed in taxes, credit-card debt and home-repair bills.

Vierling's situation, some experts say, illustrates a basic problem with the credit-counseling provision of the bankruptcy law: It's too late by the time many consumers get counseling. They already are in dire financial straits, with debts far outweighing income, and they have no choice but to file for bankruptcy.

Some observers say the early results show that credit counseling isn't working as intended. It doesn't appear to be shifting more people into debt-management plans instead of filing for bankruptcy.

Steve Bartlett, president of the industry association Financial Services Roundtable, supports the law but says it's flawed.

"Early on, most of the pre-bankruptcy counseling is not especially useful because it's only occurring for people right before they go into bankruptcy," Bartlett said. "The flaw is that the bankruptcy counseling is only occurring at the end of the process when you have little option. That's not what we wanted or the agencies wanted."

Supporters and skeptics alike say it's too early to draw conclusions.

"It's going to take us a couple of years to sort out the impact of the law," said Susan Keating, chief executive of the National Foundation for Credit Counseling.

However, a foundation report released in April provides a snapshot of the law's first six months, raising questions about long-term funding and whether the credit-counseling industry can meet demand as bankruptcy filings increase. These issues must be addressed soon "if credit counseling is to work," Keating said.

The new bankruptcy law, which took effect Oct. 17, was designed to make it more difficult for people to erase their debts under Chapter 7 bankruptcy. For the first time, it also mandated financial education, requiring consumers to undergo credit counseling to consider alternatives before filing for bankruptcy. The law also calls for attendance at a debt-education workshop after bankruptcy.

Nationally, 150 approved nonprofit agencies had led nearly 263,000 counseling conferences with potential bankruptcy filers through May 10, according to the U.S. Trustee Program, which oversees the bankruptcy system. Each person receives a counseling certificate good for six months.

Americans like to spend money — often more than they earn. Their total credit-card debt exceeds $800 billion.

Easy credit has helped fuel a spree that has contributed to a tripling of bankruptcy filings since 1990. Last year, more than 2 million people filed for bankruptcy in the U.S., a record.

So far this year, filings have tumbled to about one-third of 2005 levels nationally.