Oregon Republicans Squash Dems’ Efforts To Regulate Payday Loans
By Danielle MasonPayday Loan Writer
Salem, OR — Representative Betty Komp (D-Woodburn) fought for a vote Tuesday on a bill that would have set rules in Oregon's presently unregulated payday-loan industry, protecting consumers from extremely high interest rates and what she calls "predatory lending practices," but the majority Republicans killed the effort on a party-line vote.
Senate Bill 545, which passed the Senate earlier this session, would have set a limit on the interest and fees that a lender may charge for payday loans — a limit where none now exists. The bill would have established a maximum of $15 for every $100 borrowed for the first loan, and $10 per hundred for each renewal loan.
The bill also would have set a 31-day term for payday advances, and would have required that the borrower pay a quarter of the principal for each renewal, up to a maximum of three loans. Komp noted that the permissible annualized interest rate allowed by SB 545 is still more than 390% APR.
The requirement for payment of 25 percent of the outstanding principal before the loan can be renewed reduces the probability that a low-income borrower would fall into a "bottomless pit of debt," Komp explained.
February 27th, 2006 at 5:07 pm
[…] The newspaper calls on state and county governments to control the industry, saying that it is not a municipal responsibility. But House Republican leaders killed a bill last year that would have reduced the interest rates that lenders charge and made other important changes. […]
April 11th, 2006 at 8:22 am
[…] But the Oregon Legislature whiffed on this issuesin its last regular session. House Republicans stopped the payday loan legislation. Now groups are gathering petition signatures to put payday loan initiatives on the November ballot. This should not be that hard. Some Republicans don’t like the restrictions in the payday loan initiative, but polls suggest an overwhelming percentage of Oregonians do. Oregonians are right. The runaway payday loan industry must be reined in. […]