Those that complain about the unfair practices of no faxing payday loan lenders often forget one fact:

Consumers are privy to a slew of federal protections. Whether these are related to opening savings accounts, taking out cash loans or trying to build a good credit record, individuals have an assortment of rights.

"There's a broad array of consumer protection laws that relate to financial activities," said Bob Mooney, deputy director of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s division of supervision and consumer protection. "Some have been around for a while, and we've come to take them for granted."

For example, the Truth in Lending Act should be understood by all payday loan applicants. Enacted by Congress in 1968, the law is designed to make sure lenders disclose ALL costs in their loan agreements.

Thanks to this legislation, clients can get information about annual percentage rates and late fees when they borrow money through cheap payday loan providers or sign up for credit cards, Mooney said. The disclosure is required before credit is extended and, in some cases, it also must be included in periodic billing statements.

"Consumers can use this information to compare credit products to determine which is the most cost-effective for them," Mooney said. "This is particularly important with credit cards, payday loans and other types of credit."

Therefore, as those who defend payday loans would state, the practice may not be so unfair. Individuals need to ask questions and realize they have the right to various answers.

War is bad enough, Alexi Giannoulias, argues - soldiers shouldn't have to return home to high-interest military payday loan payments, as well.

Giannoulias is a Democratic candidate for Illinois treasurer. He wants to make bank loans easier to obtain for state soldiers, especially those who muster out of the service after returning from Iraq or Afghanistan.

During a press conference Friday in Belleville, Giannoulias outlined a plan to supplement current faxless payday loan programs for members or past members of the Illinois National Guard and Illinois residents who are members of the U.S. Army Reserve. To be eligible, a member of the military must be within six months of leaving the service.

If elected, Giannoulias said he would offer bankers the incentive of having state funds deposited in their banks if they will offer $10,000 loans at up to 7 percent to military personnel. He wants to reduce the amount eventually owed via military payday loans.

"If applicants have even the slightest blemish on their credit report or lack the necessary collateral, loans will be denied," said Giannoulias. "Our military personnel should not have to take out a high-interest loan from a payday loan store to cover their living expenses and wind up in an endless cycle of debt," he said.

The proposed plan will increase the repayment period from 24 to 36 months. Giannoulias cited a December 2004 New York Times study that showed up to 26 percent of military personnel have gone to payday advance loan facilities to get money.

Giannoulias said his plan will NOT cost taxpayers. Bankers will be encouraged to make riskier loans at up to 7 percent in return for having state funds deposited in their banks.

"The state treasurer's office will deposit funds into that financial institution," he said of bankers willing to participate in the program.

Some letters to The Bend Bulletin are scathing in their attacks on payday loans. Others, however, such as the following from Howard Katz, defend such cash advances.

Here are some facts:

• In Oregon in 2004, more than 720,000 cash loans were issued, and there were five complaints.
• The average payday loan is $250, with a fee of $30 for a two-week period.
• Most fast payday loans are NOT rolled over more than once. If the borrower can't pay, the lender will usually accommodate the borrower in any fashion convenient for the borrower and usually without additional interest.

Payday advance lenders are in business for the same reason as this publication, yet there are no editorials calling for legislation reining in the cost of advertising space. There simply is no difference between buying and selling shirts, food, cars or payday loans.

These thieves must love the payday loan business. It's provided them with bags and bags of cash.

So one can assume, after an Athens cash advance/check cashing company was robbed late Wednesday/early Thursday this week. The pattern was similar to previous robberies this year of stories that offer payday loans.

The victim this was was Check ’n Go, located in the 1300 block of East Tyler. As has happened in other burglaries, a blunt object - possibly a sledge hammer - was used to break a hole through the outer wall of the building. Once inside, the robbers stole a safe from inside the store containing cash and checks. The amount of money taken is being withheld to protect the business.

“It’s very similar to crimes recently committed in our area, and it’s possible it’s the same actors,” Athens Police Chief Buddy Hill said.

But he noted the police department has no evidence tying similar cash loan crimes together. He said some physical evidence was recovered at the scene.

A garbage collector picking up dumpsters behind the strip mall where Check ’n Go is located discovered a hole smashed through the back of the business around 5:15 a.m. Thursday. The investigation is ongoing.

Times haven't changed for Republic Bancorp since it discontinued its payday loan practice. We reported earlier this year that first quarter profits fell after such a decision was reached; the same occurred last quarter.

On Friday, the business reported a 28 percent profit drop for the quarter ending June 30, largely because the company’s results from a year earlier included the aforementioned payday advance business.

Not counting the payday loan revenue, profits were $6 million, down from $6.6 million a year earlier.

“Although we did not post record earnings, we believe our results were solid and are a testament to the core banking principles that we practice each and every day,” Steve Trager, Republic CEO, said in a statement.

He cited the slight difference between the short-term interest rates the bank pays for deposits and the long-term rates it charges for loans as a pressure on profits. The company said its loan portfolio, particularly residential real estate, has lifted banking net interest income. Non-interest income increases included a 24 percent increase in deposit service charges, primarily because of new checking accounts.

The bank did not say it had any plans to bring back offers on bad credit payday loans for its clients.

How do consumers know it’s summer, aside from those scorching temperatures? Try the numerous payday loan, mortgage and other loan offers they’re besieged by. Borrowers are constantly encouraged to charge a vacation to a credit card or take out a cash advance for a new boat.

Of course, these can have detrimental side effects; namely, an abundance of debt. This has become more true than ever thanks to the doubling of minimum credit card payments, the new bankruptcy reform law that took effect last fall and the extreme interest rates charged by most online payday advance lenders.

With this in mind, let’s go over a few tips for controlling those balances:

1. A budget knows no season: Just because the boss is in Hawaii doesn’t mean your budget is on vacation. Post your budget somewhere visible, like the fridge door, so summer can’t burn it out of your mind.

2. Stay old-fashioned: How did you spend summer days and nights as a child? Revisit old favorites: star-gazing, basketball in the driveway, frozen fruit pops, a cookout with friends, a trip to the local pool. You don’t need a payday loan online for these activities.

3. Take it easy on vacation: Try a camping vacation or a road trip. One study found that a family of four can take a weeklong RV trip for $483, compared to $1,169 for a car trip (staying in motels) or a painful $2,918 for a vacation by plane. For a getaway on the (dirt) cheap, pitch a tent in your backyard - and borrow your own indoor plumbing.

4. Think cold: Think “Christmas in July” and plan now for holiday purchases. Make sure you have a budget in place for seasonal gifts. Then, take advantage of summer sales to get great deals. This will help you not become one of the millions that turns to faxless payday loans for last-second shopping.

As Joe R. Campa Jr. was sworn in as the Navy's 11th Master Chief Petty Officer this week, most of the day's attention was focused on his predecessor.

Terry D. Scott received praised for being an exceptional leaders at the ceremony at the Washington Navy Yard. Aside from actual battles, one of the struggled Scott focused on for awhile? The military payday loan issue.

Until his very last day in office, Scott worked for his fellow servicemen. He recently gave an interview to a major news station about the problem of predatory cash advance lenders, businesses targeting sailors for supposedly cheap payday loans or title loans with enormous interest rates.

Such an issue has been in the news a lot these days. The Pentagon is even getting involved in the debate in military payday loans and we'll keep you posted as events occur.

Let's welcome another website into the online payday loan universe. 

LitFunding Corp. announced today that its wholly owned subsidiary, Easy Money Express, has signed a service agreement with M3 Internet Services Inc. to provide the servicing of Easy Money's Internet-based payday loan business.

Morton Reed, president of LitFunding Corp. said:

"A key component of operating our payday loan business consists of an infrastructure, including hardware, software and management of the technologies required to track and account for the customer servicing and collections aspects of the business.

The ability to utilize M3's existing online payday loan software to service our new business operations is intended to save us a significant amount of time and dollars in establishing this type of business."

Recently, Easy Money entered into an agreement with Interactive Brand Development to provide Internet marketing to Interactive Brand's customer base, directing potential personal loan customers to Easy Money.

Readers of the Oregonian are speaking out. A number of concerned Oregon residents wrote to the paper about the recent payday loan controversy.

In their letters to the editor, the readers expressed their beliefs that the state should regulate both car title loans and payday loans, for these are the products of companies who prey upon consumers who cannot help themselves. Below are their thoughts.

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From Charles W. Hemingway of Bend, Ore.:

My stepdaughter, a single mother of four, took out a $500 car title loan without telling us. We had given her the car to help her get back on her feet. She needed money to pay rent, buy groceries and put gas in the car and was too proud to come to us because she felt like she had come to us too often.

She got sick and missed several payments. By the time she came to us for help, it cost her and us about $1,400 between what she owed and what she had to pay back, even though she had been trying to pay it off. This was all over a three-month timeframe from the time she took out the loan until she got it paid off.

Had she lost her car, she would have had no way to get to work to support herself and her four children. These businesses need to be subject to the same laws and regulations as fast payday loan companies.

From Janet Whitney of Bend, Ore.:

I believe that interest rate regulations should be extended to car title and other lenders. They are imposing predatory rates, similar to payday loans.

Anna Aguilar of Portland, Ore.:

Of course Oregon should do something about the car title loan places that rip-off low-income people. I don't know why they are allowed to exist at all. They prey upon people who don't have money and charge huge fees. Restrict them and get rid of them.

They do nothing positive for our community.

Meet John Gill, Jr.

The Independent News reports that for at least 14 years, various payday loan schemes around the country have made him rich. Very rich.

The 48-year old Phenix City, Ala., man, who resides in a waterfront home on the Chattahoochee River on the Alabama/Georgia line, has, since 1992, been in trouble with the law in Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia and Washington.

Yet despite a bevy of cease and desist orders, consent orders, assurances of discontinuance, injunctions, settlement agreements and appellate court decisions from various states, Gill often keeps right on operating in the same location simply by changing his companies' names, naming different principals, or employing other guises to conceal his ongoing payday loan activities.

The Texas attorney general alleges that his companies are really loan shark operations targeting military personnel and charging as much as 782 percent interest annually.

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