A consumer protection restitution bill that would give Minnesota fraud victims financial relief passed in the Senate Judiciary Committee.

It’s been one year since patients in the east metro were left in limbo when “Woodbury Dental Arts” was shut down without warning.

Many patients had unfinished treatments and infections, and they were out thousands of dollars they’d paid upfront.

RELATED: Woodbury dentist speaks out after abrupt clinic closure leaves patients in limbo

One of those people, Helene Johnson, took her concerns to lawmakers calling on them to protect future victims of fraud.

“It’s not fun not being able to eat anything more than soup and mashed potatoes,” Johnson, fraud victim, said in the hearing.

Johnson was one of many patients forced to live without teeth. She put her trust in Woodbury Dental Arts when the clinic abruptly shut its doors in March of last year.

“Everybody was out of luck,” Johnson said during the hearing.

Johnson was out $15,000 she paid up front for dental implants that were not finished.

She shared her story with the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday, explaining a consumer fraud restitution fund could help victims like her.

“This means restitution paid to Minnesota consumers who are owed money from the consumer enforcement action but will never recover that money without the existence of this fund,” Professor Prentiss Cox, who was defending the bill, said in the hearing.

Democratic lawmaker Sen. Ann Rest teamed up with AARP Minnesota and the attorney general’s office to draft the bill. It would create a fraud restitution account in the attorney general’s office capped at $1 million dollars per year.

“To help scam and fraud victims recover financial debt is its purpose,” Sen. Ann Rest (DFL-New Hope) said.

“I’m hoping this bill will go through, and there are some additional protections,” Johnson said.

The bill received pushback from Republican lawmakers who wanted to amend the bill, claiming the award money process should be public.

“The public does not have an opportunity to understand how the attorney general is handing out this money,” Sen. Warren Limmer, R-Maple Grove, said. “It’s certainly something that I think we should consider further as this bill progresses.”

“My concern rests with the transparency right now in the attorney general’s office,” Sen. Michael Kreun, R-Blaine, said.

The bill is heading to the finance committee within the next month.