BAPCPA attempted to eliminate the perceived "forum shopping" by changing the rules on claiming exemptions. Exemptions define the amount of property debtors may protect from liquidation to pay creditors. Typically, every state has exemption laws that define the amount of property that can be protected from creditor collection action within the state. There is also a federal statute that defines exemptions in federal cases. In bankruptcy, Congress allowed states to opt out of the federal exemption scheme. Opt out states still controlled the amount of property that could be protected from creditors, or "exempted" from creditors, in bankruptcy cases.