skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The latest on the Key Bridge collapse, New York puts forth legislation to get clean energy projects on the grid and Wisconsin and other states join a federal summer food program to help feed kids across the country.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Republicans float conspiracy theories on the collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge, South Carolina s congressional elections will use a map ruled unconstitutional, and the Senate schedules an impeachment trial for Homeland Secretary Myorkas.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Report Renews Calls for Stricter Payday-Lending Rules

play audio
Play

Wednesday, August 31, 2016   

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Opponents of payday and car title lending say the practices lead to financial abuse of consumers, and a new report supports new federal rules to combat the problem.

In the report by Ohio PIRG, researchers analyzed close to 10,000 recent complaints made to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).

The researchers found that 91 percent involved aggressive debt-collection practices, bank account closures, and/or long-term cycles of debt.

Kelly Griffith, executive director of the Center for Economic Integrity, says the federal government should adopt a proposed rule that would force lenders to determine, ahead of time, a borrower's ability to pay and still afford such necessities as rent and food.

"This is more of a lending scheme or scam, and they lend based on their ability to collect, not on the borrower's ability to repay," she states.

The PIRG report also found that around 15 companies accounted for more than half the complaints, many charging triple-digit interest rates.

The report says some of the biggest offenders are doing business under the names CashNetUSA, NetCredit, Check 'n Go, and ACE Cash Express.

Ohio voters approved tougher standards for payday lending in 2008, but the report notes some lenders use loopholes to work around them.

Griffith is concerned that the CFPB's proposed rule contains a massive loophole that would allow companies to make up to six loans to each borrower per year before verifying income.

"We call this sort of a business-as-usual situation, because if you don't determine a borrower's ability to repay right up front with the first loan and every loan, then these six loans are just going to do irreparable harm and the lender has no motivation to change their business model," she stresses.

The public comment period on the new rule ends on Oct. 7. A link to the complaint form is online at stoppaydaypredators.org/economicintegrity.




get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021