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January 5, 2009

Casa Grande: City dusts off payday-loan, zoning-limit ordinance

The City of Casa Grande is poised to enforce zoning limits on payday lenders, but the ultimate solution is the Legislature respecting the will of the voters and NOT REAUTHORIZING the predatory payday lending scheme in Arizona beyond its expiration in 2010. From the 12/30/08 Casa Grande Valley Newspapers:
Casa Grande resumes effort to space future [...]

December 31, 2008

AP: Payday lending rate cap among new laws in NH

New Hampshire’s 36% rate cap takes effect Jan 1, making the Granite State the fifteenth to outlaw predatory payday lending. Story by Norma Love:
New Hampshire is giving payday lenders the gong as it rings in the New Year.
A law that takes effect Thursday caps the interest rate on small loans at 36 percent [...]

December 29, 2008

Arizona Republic letters: Legislator caving in on payday loans

From Dave Hall, in Sun City West, comes this no-nonsense letter to Russell Pearce and any other legislators who may wish to ignore the will of the voters:
The payday-loan industry initiative (Proposition 200) went down in flames in November as voters rejected allowing legalized loan sharks to continue in business past 2010.
Although $14 [...]

December 22, 2008

NPR Marketplace: Financial products need new regulation

From NPR’s award-winning program, Marketplace, commentator Amelia Tyagi:
The crash of the financial markets and the pile up of investment scams have some people asking — Where were the regulatory agencies in all of this? Amelia Tyagi says financial products need to be regulated as strictly as the drug, toy and cosmetic industries to [...]

December 8, 2008

Daily Star: Ballot failure costly for payday lenders

Prop. 200 a $14.6M bust; far less spent on other Arizona initiatives
By Howard Fischer - Capitol Media Services

PHOENIX - Payday lenders spent more than $17 for each of the 860,607 votes they got for their proposal to keep their industry alive in Arizona beyond 2010.

And they lost.
Final figures for this year’s election show that [...]

December 4, 2008

Missourian: Proposed legislation to restrict payday loans

Newly-elected and returning legislators in Missouri will push a bill capping payday loan interest rates at 36% APR - similar to the federal limit on payday loans to military members:
JEFFERSON CITY - Columbia state representatives-elect Chris Kelly, Mary Still and Stephen Webber, along with Rep. Paul Quinn, D-Monroe City, have pre-filed legislation they [...]

December 3, 2008

Daily Iowan: Bolkcom, Jacoby criticize payday loans

Iowa legislators promise action during 2009 session to protect consumers from predatory payday interest rates. By Mary Harrington - The Daily Iowan:

State legislators warned people on Tuesday to avoid high-interest rates of some short-term loans this holiday season.
Sen. Joe Bolkcom, D-Iowa City, and Rep. Dave Jacoby, D-Coralville, discussed proposed legislation that would [...]

December 1, 2008

Yuma Ch 13: Future of Payday Loans Lies with Lawmakers

From KSWT/CBS in Yuma, more evidence we have a battle on our hands in the upcoming legislative session:
You could say Arizona has a love/hate relationship with the payday lender. In the past few years, more than 750 short term loan shops have popped up all over the state. In November, voters turned down the crux [...]

November 21, 2008

The Economist: Casting out the money-lenders

From The Economist print edition - November 20th
Cities and states are cracking down on payday lending
IN 2007 the small city of Mesquite, a suburb of Dallas, was trying to overhaul its ageing infrastructure and faded industrial zones. City officials launched a renewal programme, but found their efforts marred by payday lenders. These are shops that [...]

November 12, 2008

Star Editorial: Payday lending industry down, but not out

In a thought-provoking editorial today, the Arizona Daily Star warns proponents of fair lending laws: The Fight is Not Over. They’re 100% right.
Our view: Defeat of Prop. 200 was a setback for predatory loans, but Legislature could toss them a life preserver
Arizonans dealt a big blow to the state’s payday-loan industry in last week’s election. [...]

November 11, 2008

Howard Fischer: Payday-loan industry in quandary

In today’s Star, front page of the Business section:
Outlook not good for staying open after 2010 cutoff - CAPITOL MEDIA SERVICES
The defeat of Proposition 200 at the polls has left the payday loan industry with a two-word question: Now what?

Doing nothing is not really an option, as that would put the lenders out of business [...]

November 10, 2008

Daily Star: Future of payday loans lies with lawmakers

In tomorrow’s Daily Star:
PHOENIX - Arizona voters may have buried the payday loan industry, but backers are hoping the state Legislature can dig them out.
Voters overwhelmingly rejected Proposition 200, a ballot initiative paid for and written by the loan companies to allow them to continue charging high interest rates on small loans [...]

November 10, 2008

Arizona Republic: Vote may be the end of payday lenders

From today’s front page of the Republic:
The payday-loan industry, which flourished this past decade on Arizonans’ almost-insatiable need for quick, short-term loans regardless of their high interest rates, may have to close down in Arizona unless state lawmakers can be persuaded to ignore voters’ wishes.
Voters last week overwhelmingly rejected Proposition 200, a ballot initiative financed [...]

November 8, 2008

Check Into Cash to keep Ohio, Arizona stores open

Our first evidence that the payday lenders intend to ignore the will of the voters. Will some legislators be arrogant and greedy enough to carry their water? Stay tuned… From Chattanooga Times/Free Press - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services:
Check Into Cash, the nation’s biggest privately held payday lender, will keep its Ohio and Arizona stores open despite [...]

November 6, 2008

East Valley Trib: Payday lenders ponder next move after defeat

Great article in today’s East Valley Tribune:
The payday loan industry is keeping mum after the defeat of its ballot initiative to permanently protect its right to operate in Arizona.
Voters rejected Proposition 200, which was backed by one of the most expensive campaigns in state history. Stan Barnes, who managed the campaign, had nothing to say [...]

November 5, 2008

Cleveland Plain Dealer: Payday lenders lose big in Ohio - and deservedly so

The Cleveland Plain Dealer weighs in on yesterday’s results:
It didn’t matter how many millions of dollars payday lenders spent in their desperate attempt to continue charging 391 percent interest rates on short-term loans, Ohioans weren’t about to be fooled by their deceitful campaign.
Voters Tuesday dealt the payday-lending industry one of the most humiliating election defeats [...]

November 5, 2008

Star: Grass roots trump cash on Prop. 200

Our view: Short-on-money organizers deal big blow to predatory payday lending
Arizona voters took a major step toward protecting financially vulnerable consumers Tuesday by rejecting Proposition 200, which would have given payday lenders the right to do business in Arizona forever.
In defeating Prop. 200 by a 60-40 margin, voters proved that grass-roots consensus, common sense [...]

November 4, 2008

East Valley Trib: Voters say no to payday loans

by Howard Fischer:
Voters apparently have decided they don’t want to keep payday loans legal in Arizona.
In one of the most expensive campaigns in state history, the lenders sought approval of Proposition 200 to permanently protect their right to operate in Arizona — at least until some other ballot measure changes that.
The lenders had collected more [...]

November 4, 2008

WE DID IT!

Thanks to all of you who have been a part of this campaign for the past many, many months. Thank you for spreading the word. Thank you for speaking truth to power. Thank you for having faith.
With 92% of precincts reporting, we have beat the payday lenders 60-40 statewide. Even more impressively, we’ve beat them [...]

November 2, 2008

Shriver Center: Arizona and Ohio Ballot Measures May Curtail Reasonable Payday Loan Regulations

Here’s an interesting post from the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law:
By Karen Harris, Supervising Attorney

In recent years several states have enacted annual percentage interest rate (APR) limits that eliminate the triple-digit interest rates charged by payday lenders. The payday lending industry is now fighting back by sponsoring ballot initiatives that threaten these sensible [...]

November 1, 2008

East Valley Trib: Prop 200 payday loan reform ads not telling whole story

Prop 200 ads not telling whole story
by Howard Fischer - Capitol Media Services - Nov. 1, 2008
Jack LaSota is taping radio ads and phone messages urging Arizonans to vote for Proposition 200 saying that, as the former state attorney general, he knows “the payday loan industry needs to be reformed.”
But what LaSota does not disclose [...]

November 1, 2008

Arizona Republic letters: Say NO to Proposition 200

In today’s Republic:
Before anyone goes to the polls, I urge them to actually read the propositions.
If you read Proposition 200, you’ll notice that the “reform” offered on payday loans is sponsored by the payday-loan industry.
I have seen these loan documents and have seen upward of 500 percent interest rates.
This is immoral, wrong and driven toward [...]

November 1, 2008

The award for deceptive advertising goes to…

Check out this column by Tom Collier, president of the Better Business Bureau of Southern Arizona, in Friday’s Inside Tucson Business:
If there is an annual award for Duplicitous Advertising, Arizona’s payday loan industry should win it. In fact, I shall create one. It is richly deserved. And I speak from the perspective of an organization [...]

October 31, 2008

Letters: PREYday loans

Dr. Joyce Steiner had this letter in the Tucson Citizen on Friday:

Prop. 200 aptly called preyday loan initiative
An accurate name for Proposition 200, the so-called Payday Loan Reform Act, would be the Preyday Loan Protection Act.
The payday loan industry has spent nearly $12 million (most of it from out of state) to garner support for [...]

October 31, 2008

Tucson Citizen: Payday loan industry’s deceitful tactics seek to fool voters

From today’s Citizen Voices Page:
Voter beware. A shamelessly duplicitous initiative is being pushed by a grossly dishonest ad campaign aimed at getting you to vote for Proposition 200.
Don’t. The only reasonable vote on Prop. 200 is “no.”
This initiative will not reform payday lending, despite its deceitful title.
It will only allow the lenders to keep preying [...]

October 30, 2008

Arizona Republic: Reject Prop 200

In another great editorial today, the Republic warns voters to beware of the deceptive ad campaign by the payday lenders, and strongly urges voters to reject Proposition 200:
“Payday lenders who take advantage of hard-working families need to be stopped.”
Who says so? The industry itself. The line is featured in one of the sneakiest, [...]

October 30, 2008

TZR: Religious leaders unite to oppose Prop 200

The Zonie Report, an independent news source based in Phoenix, had this great article today:
Whenever priests, ministers and rabbis find common ground, it makes sense to listen to what they have to say. In Arizona, members of all these groups have come together to renounce and oppose Proposition 200.
Prop 200 is labeled the Payday Loan [...]

October 28, 2008

Wall Street Journal: Payday Lenders Back Measures to Unwind State Restrictions

Today’s WSJ reports on the $30 million being poured into Arizona and Ohio ballot initiatives by the payday loan industry, so it can re-write state regulations to benefit payday lenders:
Payday lenders are spending millions of dollars to back ballot initiatives that challenge state restrictions on their cash-advance practices.
The $85 billion payday industry provides short-term loans, [...]

October 28, 2008

Sierra Vista Herald: Portouw: Reform comes in Prop. 200’s failure

Larry Portouw, President of the Fort Huachuca 50, had this excellent Letter to the Editor in Sunday’s paper:
To the Editor:
When the Arizona legislature originally permitted the pay day lending industry to open its doors in Arizona, it essentially did so by granting the industry a 10-year waiver on the usury interest rate cap of 36 [...]

October 27, 2008

AZ Republic: Prop 200: It won’t fix payday loans

Friday’s Arizona Republic includes this STRONG endorsement to VOTE NO on 200. The Republic became the TENTH newspaper in the state to endorse No on 200:
A heavy-hitting list of opponents isn’t the only reason to vote “no” on Proposition 200. But the breadth of opposition is a measure of the problems in the payday-loan initiative.
The [...]

October 27, 2008

Better Business Bureau offers best, worst ways to raise quick cash

Many people are struggling financially right now. If you need to raise some cash to help bridge the gap until your next payday or until the holidays are over, the Better Business Bureau has a list of the best and worst ways to raise quick cash.
Worst Ways
Title Loans - This is the worst way to [...]

October 27, 2008

Inside Tucson Business: Two very different campaigns at play in state’s payday loan proposition

Today’s Inside Tucson Business had this great article highlighting the money payday lenders have poured into ‘Yes on 200′ propaganda, and what’s at stake for Arizonans in this election:
“The initiative is an all-or-nothing for the payday loan industry in the state. If the Payday Loan Reform Act passes, payday lenders can operate indefinitely, albeit with [...]

October 26, 2008

Arizona Republic: A look at spending on this year’s ballot measures

Campaign spending by payday-loan industry leads the pack with $13 million
by Mary Jo Pitzl and Scott Wong, Arizona Republic
Those TV ads and glossy mail pieces that have inundated voters in recent weeks come with a price. A multi-million-dollar price tag, according to reports filed Thursday.
Leading the spending pack for this year’s ballot measures is [...]

October 26, 2008

AZ Republic: Keep a skeptical eye on propositions

by Doug Maceachern, Sunday, Oct 26, 2008
The Ballot Props: A Jaded Primer (of some of them)
As a rule, Arizona is governed by neither a governor nor by a legislature.
It is governed by little bands of people who gather signatures for ballot initiatives.
In turn, the signature gatherers are financed by George Soros, Peter Lewis [...]

October 25, 2008

East Valley Tribune: Following the ballot measure money trail

Following the money trail
Howard Fischer, Capitol Media Services
The bid for Arizonans’ minds and votes on several high-profile ballot measures is turning out to be a one-sided affair, at least financially. Nowhere is that more evident than in the fight over whether to make payday lending a permanent part of Arizona.
Arizonans for Financial Reform reports it [...]

October 23, 2008

12 News: Payday lenders’ motives questioned on Prop 200

In the lead story on the Evening News, Melissa Blasius explores the real deal behind Prop 200:
The payday loan industry has spent about $12 million dollars on its campaign to pass Proposition 200, according to state records. Opponents say the massive spending by the lending businesses is proof that the November ballot initiative doesn’t offer [...]

October 22, 2008

Eastern AZ Courier: Vote ‘no’ on Payday Loan Reform Act

Papers across the state are urging their readers to VOTE NO! Here is today’s editorial from the Eastern Arizona Courier:

Considering the proposition more of a trap than a reform, Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard is urging a “no” vote on Prop. 200.
“It’s a trap we need to make sure Arizona consumers don’t continue to get [...]

October 22, 2008

Payson Roundup: Our view on perplexing propositions

The Payson Roundup joins the growing list of newspapers across the state to endorse “NO” on 200:
Prop. 200: Payday loan reforms
This one’s easy: It’s a crocodile dressed up like a gondola.
Supposedly, Proposition 200 will impose “reforms” on the predatory payday loan industry.
And on the face of it, the various restrictions sound reasonable enough, with electronic [...]

October 22, 2008

R Cubed: Message - We Suck

The good folk at Rum Romanism and Rebellion thought the latest industry attack ad was quite ironic.
“Here is an unusual ad from the folks pushing for Proposition 200, the ersatz “Reform Payday Loans” initiative. The gist seems to be: vote for our proposition because we are bad people that need to be stopped.”
Get the latest [...]

October 21, 2008

AZ Republic: 5% of UA freshmen obtained payday loan

by Craig Harris - The Arizona Republic - Oct 22, 2008
At least 5 percent of last year’s freshmen at the University of Arizona obtained a payday loan, a figure the surveyor described as “very alarming.”
Arizona’s Norton School of Family and Consumer Sciences conducted the survey, which measured the financial habits of 2,172 freshmen - about [...]

October 21, 2008

Sierra Vista Herald: Vote ‘no’ on Prop. 200

In yet another editorial from a leading regional paper in Arizona, The Sierra Vista Herald urges its readers to reject Prop 200:
“If anything, the ‘reform’ in this act favors the payday loan business over the consumer. If approved, this measure would not only override what the Legislature approved, it would make it untouchable from lawmakers [...]

October 20, 2008

AZ Daily Star: VOTE NO on Prop 200

Sunday, the Arizona Daily Star came out with its strong endorsement AGAINST Prop 200.

All one needs to know about this self-serving initiative, the “Payday Loan Reform Act,” is that the payday-loan industry has poured an incredible amount of money into it — nearly $12 million as of the middle of September.

Payday lenders are doing this [...]

October 16, 2008

AZ Daily Sun: Payday loan campaign a shameful exercise in direct democracy

Today, the Arizona Daily Sun in Flagstaff came out STRONGLY against Prop 200. Check it out:
Voters should soundly reject Prop. 200 and send the issue back to the Legislature for true reform.

It’s not uncommon for an industry to wrap itself in the mantle of reform to try to convince voters it is on their [...]

October 16, 2008

Prescott Daily Courier: Letter: Payday lenders prey on vulnerable souls

EDITOR:
For once I don’t agree with the Courier on an issue.
Yes, Payday Loan places may be a necessary evil, but they are still predators, charging exorbitant interest and ruining lives when people get in over their heads. The proposition, while claiming to be payday loan reform, is a farce! It is created by that industry, [...]

October 15, 2008

KVOA News 4: Breaking down Prop 200

On tonight’s 5:00 News, KTAR’s Ed Tribble presented this in-depth and insightful analysis of Proposition 200. We will post video as well.
“…Opponents to the measure say 90 percent of payday loan borrowers run into problems repaying them because they carry a 400 percent interest rate.
They say the proposition is deceptive because it tricks people into [...]

October 15, 2008

AZ Daily Sun - Ad watch: Payday loan ‘reform’: Fox guarding henhouse

The industry wants to ‘protect’ consumers, but it doesn’t disclose that Prop. 200 means locking in a maximum interest rate of 391 percent.

By J. FERGUSON - Sun Staff Reporter
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Payday lending reform, on paper, sounds like a good thing.
Until you find out the reform is being touted by the industry itself.
Unable to find [...]

October 15, 2008

Yuma Sun: Payday loans aren’t needed

In a great Guest Opinion today, Ronna Sue Stubbs of the Yuma Community Food Bank speaks out against Prop 200:

Nonprofit organizations normally do not speak out against propositions, or legislative issues, even when we don’t agree with The Sun editorials. Agencies such as 501c(3) nonprofits do not typically lobby but we can and [...]

October 15, 2008

Yuma Sun: Payday loan causing Yuma woman financial hardship

BY JAMES GILBERT, SUN STAFF WRITER - Oct 15, 2008
One elderly Yuma woman said she is in deep debt over the payday loan she took out, then couldn’t afford to pay back.
The woman, who asked not to be identified because she doesn’t want her family to know she is having financial [...]

October 15, 2008

Yuma Sun: Prop 200 debates payday loans

Prop 200 Debates Payday Loans
BY JAMES GILBERT, SUN STAFF WRITER - Oct 15, 2008
Supporters of Proposition 200 say the measure means real reform for the payday loan industry in Arizona, but opponents claim the measure will trap borrowers in a never-ending cycle of debt.
“It could be called the ’should we reform payday [...]

October 15, 2008

ABC News 15: Prop 200 debate: Debt trap or cash cow?

From last night’s evening news on ABC 15 - KNXV-TV Phoenix:
Prop 200 could dramatically change the payday loan industry in Arizona, whether you vote for or against the new regulations.
A vote against the measure would shut down the industry, which is subject to sunset laws in 2010.
A vote in favor of the [...]

October 14, 2008

News/Talk 92.3 KTAR: Pros and cons on Prop 200, pay day loan stores

October 14th, 2008
by Kevin Tripp/KTAR
News/Talk 92-3 KTAR is looking at the eight propositions on the statewide ballot in Arizona’s Nov. 4 general election. Today: Prop. 200, which would regulate payday loan stores.
The Payday Loan Reform Act is actually paid for by the industry, but Valley political consultant Stan Barnes, a spokesman for “Yes on 200,” [...]

October 14, 2008

Credit Union Times: Arizona System Pushing for Defeat of Payday Referendum

Credit Union Times - Oct 13, 2008 - Jim Rubenstein
…In an email blitz rousing its members, the Arizona [Credit Union] group said it is “weighing in on Proposition 200 - the Payday Loan Reform Act - by urging the 1.6 million credit union members statewide to vote No!” on the proposition, which largely frees the [...]

October 14, 2008

Star Letters: Vote ‘no’ on payday lending measure

Arizona Daily Star - Letters to the Editor - October 13, 2008
Vote ‘no’ on payday lending measure

Proposition 200, the so-called Payday Loan Reform Act, is anything but a reform. It is put forward by the payday industry to ensure that they don’t have to go out of business in 2010.

Many Arizonans, including [...]

October 14, 2008

Star Letters: Prop. 200 isn’t what it seems to be

Arizona Daily Star - Letters to the Editor - October 13, 2008
Re: the Oct. 8 Ad Watch “Prop. 200 and payday loans.”
Thanks for investigating and publishing the truth about Prop. 200. This initiative is simply no reform whatsoever and would make this legal form of loan sharking permanent in Arizona.
The payday-loan industry knows [...]

October 13, 2008

Adams and Jefferson: Vote No on Prop 200

In this interesting blog, “Adams and Jefferson” provides the free-market rationale for VOTING NO on Prop 200:
Arizona has a law on the books that allow payday lenders to operate in the State through July 1, 2010. Prop 200 extends that law out indefinitely and adds additional regulations on the payday lending industry.
This law was put [...]

October 13, 2008

Citizen Letters: Credit union group opposes Prop 200

Tucson Citizen - Letters to the Editor - October 13, 2008
Credit union group opposes Prop. 200
The Arizona Credit Union League opposes Proposition 200, the Payday Loan Reform Act.
We urge the more than 1.6 million Arizona credit union members to vote “no” on Prop. 200, which claims to reform payday lending but poses new threats to [...]

October 12, 2008

Arizona Republic: Against Prop. 200

Against Prop. 200 - by Craig Harris - Oct 12, 2008
There was a time when Tamara Sisk was a payday-loan addict.
Her dependence on getting quick and easy short-term loans with high-interest rates was so severe that at the end of 2005, she said she had nine loans more than $3,000 with numerous payday lenders throughout [...]

October 12, 2008

Arizona Republic: Industry [says] “Prop 200 payday-loan rules help all”

Craig Harris had this interesting piece in Sunday’s Arizona Republic, Business Section (See the Comments section online, and related story, also from Harris, regarding the experience of a typical payday borrower.)
Under the threat of going out of business, payday-loan companies have spent nearly $11 million on Proposition 200 hoping to persuade voters to approve the [...]

October 11, 2008

Tribune, Wells: Voters will have lots to say ‘no’ to at polls

Commentary by Dave Wells - Oct 11, 2008
As first lady, Nancy Reagan used to counsel teenagers with a simple message: “Just say, ‘no’” to drugs.
Voters would be wise to keep that same advice in mind before endorsing any of the hallucinogens being peddled before voters, primarily by deep-pocketed, self-serving interest groups.
No on Tempe/Kyrene School Unification: [...]

October 11, 2008

Inside Tucson Business: Some thoughts on the propositions on Nov 4 ballot

Local business leader and columnist, and former Pima County Assessor, Steve Emerine shares his views on Prop 200 in the most recent Inside Tucson Business:
Proposition 200 was written by payday loan firms to ensure they can continue to charge outrageous rates as long as anyone is alive to pay them. Don’t be fooled by the [...]

October 11, 2008

Daily Courier, Aldridge: Prop 200 would aid predatory businesses

LETTER TO THE EDITOR:
They’re kidding, aren’t they? Proposition 200 is called “Payday Reform” because it will cut the current interest rates from 458 percent per year to a fixed rate of 391 percent? This is reform?
Usury rates are anything more than 36 percent interest and the Payday Loan industry wants us to vote “yes” to [...]

October 11, 2008

Laurie Roberts, AZ Republic: “fibs, falsifications and fairy tales”

In Saturday’s Arizona Republic, columnist Laurie Roberts clearly lays out the reality behind Prop 200’s rhetoric:
“I don’t know about you, but I’m sick of this election. Claims and counterclaims, lies and more lies, fibs, falsifications and fairy tales.
If politicians and those who seek to persuade us were Pinocchio, they’d have schnozes long enough to keep [...]

October 10, 2008

AZ Daily Wildcat: Prop 200 won’t protect consumers

The Arizona Daily Wildcat, newspaper of record at the University of Arizona, has weighed in:
“The argument that closing payday loan stores would be a blow to the economy is equally spurious. It might help the economy if we legalized the sale of heroin and let merchants hawk it on the street, but that doesn’t mean [...]

October 9, 2008

Town Hall shows clearly why 200 is No Reform At All!

The Secretary of State’s Office is sponsoring Town Hall meetings across the state to review and discuss the various ballot initiatives. To see when the Town Hall is coming to your city, and to participate on behalf of the No on 200 campaign, see the schedule here.
Additionally, the Secretary of State has posted a Virtual [...]

October 8, 2008

KJZZ: Here and Now discusses Prop 200

Today, Sen. Debbie McCune Davis, Chair of Arizonans for Responsible Lending, No on 200, debated Prop 200 proponent and payday industry lobbyist Stan Barnes on KJZZ, Here and Now.
McCune Davis: “This proposal allows 391% interest in perpetuity… The REAL reform we want is to bring the payday lenders back under the state’s 36% usury law… [...]

October 6, 2008

Ahwatukee Foothills News: Proposition 200

Proposition 200: Payday Loan Reform Act
By Doug Murphy - Ahwatukee Foothills News
Supporters call Proposition 200 the “Payday loan reform act,” but in reality it is the payday loan extension act, since today’s state law will terminate all Arizona payday loan licenses on July 1, 2010.
But if voters approve Prop. 200, payday loans, at 10 times [...]

October 3, 2008

Kimble: What’s in a name? When titling initiatives, not much

Mark Kimble: Tucson Citizen - Oct 2, 2008
I know it’s early, but I’ve already decided to collect signatures for an initiative on the 2010 Arizona ballot.
The name of the initiative is set: The Free Cookies for All Act.
What’s the initiative about? Who cares? I haven’t decided yet. I have the title, so I’ll come [...]

October 2, 2008

Tucson Citizen: Critics call Prop 200 a trap, not payday loan reform

From today’s Front Page of the Citizen:
Critics call Prop 200 a trap, not payday loan reform
Industry lauds consumer choice; critics cite high interest rates
GARRY DUFFY - Tucson Citizen
Would you knowingly take out a loan with a potential 391 percent annual interest rate that included allowing the lender to electronically raid your bank account for payment?
That’s [...]

October 1, 2008

AZ Republic: Prop 200 - Payday Loan Reform Act

azcentral.com - Sept. 30, 2008
Proposition 200 - Payday Loan Reform Act
Would preserve small, short-term loans known as payday loans through rate cuts, the elimination of loan extensions and a new repayment plan.
A “yes” vote would repeal the July 1, 2010 termination date for the existing “payday loan” licensing program thus allowing it to continue indefinitely, [...]

October 1, 2008

MarketWatch: $3 Million in TV vs. 3 Billboards

PHOENIX, Oct 01, 2008 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Arizonans for Responsible Lending, No on 200, Counters $11.6 Million Propaganda Machine with Billboard Campaign Highlighting the Simple Truth
Arizonans for Responsible Lending sought to put to rest yesterday any doubts voters might have about who is behind this second most expensive initiative campaign in Arizona history, what’s at stake, [...]

October 1, 2008

Tom Collier: Follow Military’s Lead on Payday Loans

In today’s Arizona Daily Star, Tom Collier, president and CEO of the Better Business Bureau of Southern Arizona, argues why we must defeat Prop 200, stating: “The Pentagon decided it can do without payday lending. So can Arizona. Vote ‘no’ on Proposition 200.” Full Guest Opinion follows:
Follow military’s lead on payday loans
By Tom Collier [...]

September 23, 2008

Washington Post: All eyes on payday lending struggle in Ohio, Ariz.

By STEPHEN MAJORS - The Associated Press
Tuesday, September 23, 2008; 5:02 AM
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The payday loan industry is bankrolling ballot issue campaigns in Ohio and Arizona to preserve the average 391 percent annual interest rates they charge, as the two states become the focus of industry watchers and consumer advocates.
The industry is trying to [...]

September 19, 2008

AZ Capitol Times: Prop 200 offers consumer choice or debt trap — take your pick

By Bill Coates, Arizona Capitol Times
September 19, 2008
Prop. 200 supporters say their payday-loan initiative would help people like David Jepsen. Opponents argue it would perpetuate an industry that put Jepsen behind the eight ball in the first place.
Jepsen is manager of Cheuvront’s Restaurant & Wine Bar in Phoenix. It’s owned by Sen. Ken Cheuvront, D-15.
In [...]

September 17, 2008

Republic: Payday-loan industry is bankrolling Prop. 200

by Laurie Roberts, Arizona Republic
Sept 17, 2008 - Front page, Valley and State Section
What with stocks teetering and pillars of Wall Street crumbling, I figured this might be a good time to examine my future financial options.
Which is how I came to be looking at payday-loan centers. (Nothing to be embarrassed about. In fact, I [...]

September 17, 2008

AZ Daily Star: Revealing truth about predatory payday lending

Our view: Forum aims to counteract the various deceptions in industry’s fliers
Anyone who is still undecided about how to vote on Proposition 200, which would perpetuate payday lending in Arizona, should attend a forum this evening that will explain the pitfalls of payday loans for consumers.
The forum is one way that consumer groups, activists [...]

September 17, 2008

Roberts: Since when does reform equal 391% interest?

Laurie Roberts’ Columns & Blog - azcentral.com
What with stocks teetering and pillars of Wall Street crumbling, I figured this might be a good time to examine my future financial options.
Which is how I came to be looking at payday-loan centers. (Nothing to be embarrassed about. In fact, I think I saw the Lehman brothers coming [...]

September 17, 2008

EVT: Goddard decries payday loans; urges voters to reject Prop. 200

East Valley Tribune - Goddard decries payday loans; urges voters to reject Prop. 200
Howard Fischer, Capitol Media Services
Attorney General Terry Goddard said Tuesday that payday loans need to be outlawed because most Arizonans who use them don’t know when - or how - to stop.
Payday lenders spending big in bid to stay open
Goddard said while [...]

September 17, 2008

MarketWatch: Payday Lender Ballot Measure Would Take Arizonans for $149 Million per Year

WASHINGTON, Sept 16, 2008 /PRNewswire-USNewswire via COMTEX/ –
Predatory lenders attempt to stave off loss of special 400% APR privilege in Arizona
Over 700 payday lenders across the state of Arizona charge up to 459 percent annual interest on loans that trap their customers in long-term debt, finds a new report from the Center for Responsible Lending. [...]

September 16, 2008

Republic: Goddard opposes raising payday loan rates

The Arizona Republic - Goddard opposes raising payday loan rates
by Craig Harris - Sept. 16, 2008 04:17 PM

Attorney General Terry Goddard said he usually steers clear of publicly picking sides on a ballot measure, but he’s changing course when it comes to a proposition pushed by payday lenders.
Goddard, joined by fellow Democrats and religious leaders [...]

September 16, 2008

Az Daily Star: Payday Loan Group Beefs Up Campaign

Arizona Daily Star - Payday Loan Group Beefs Up Campaign
By Howard Fischer Capitol Media Services
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 09.16.2008
PHOENIX - Payday lenders funneled another nearly $2.4 million into their campaign Monday in an effort to persuade voters to let them stay in business.
The new cash infusion brings total donations so far to nearly [...]

September 16, 2008

EVT: Payday lenders spending big in bid to stay open

East Valley Tribune - Howard Fischer, Capitol Media Services
Payday lenders funneled another nearly $2.4 million into their campaign Monday in an effort to persuade voters to let them stay in business.
The new cash infusion brings total donations so far to nearly $11.6 million, all of that from the association made up of payday loan firms. [...]

September 14, 2008

East Valley Trib - Yearout: Measure doesn’t go far enough to curb bad lending practices

by Retired Officer Tom Yearout - September 14, 2008
Why does the Pentagon hate predatory payday lending? “You can have disastrous consequences for the quality of life and for the careers of service members,” Dr. David Chu told a Senate committee in 2006, as undersecretary of defense.
It was the worst financial problem for our troops in [...]

September 14, 2008

East Valley Trib: Scottsdale toughens rules on payday loan stores

by Brian Powell, East Valley Tribune
September 14, 2008
The Scottsdale City Council has agreed to impose tougher regulations on payday loan stores with hopes of reducing their numbers throughout the city.
The council last week unanimously backed the idea of establishing minimum distance requirements between the stores, which have opened primarily in the southern part of Scottsdale [...]

September 12, 2008

AzBiz.com: Payday lenders are reaching for their exemption

In a hard hitting commentary today, AzBiz.com takes on the payday lenders and Prop 200 directly:

“As you might expect, Proposition 200, which they [the payday lenders] wrote, benefits the lenders and provides only illusory protection for borrowers…
What isn’t said is that if Proposition 200 fails the special legislation that allows payday lenders to exist expires [...]

September 11, 2008

Bishop Kirk S. Smith Urges NO on 200

Usury, it’s still with us
by Bishop Kirk S. Smith
The Episcopal Diocese of Arizona
In just a few weeks many of you will be receiving your mail-in ballot, due to arrive about a month before the November General elections. This means that if I am going to say anything about the political process, I had [...]

September 11, 2008

Phoenix Biz Journal: Lenny the Loanshark ad pans payday loan proposition

Phoenix Business Journal - by Chris Casacchia
Wednesday, September 10, 2008 - 3:06 PM MST
An organization trying cap interest payments levied by payday loan providers in Arizona will debut an ad on YouTube Thursday, mocking the industry’s hidden fees.
Arizonans for Responsible Lending, No on 200, also will send the online spot to at least 26 groups, [...]

September 10, 2008

Arizona Republic: City zeroes in on payday-loan stores

Well folks, the good people of Scottsdale have joined Phoenix, Tempe, Mesa, Peoria, Youngtown, Casa Grande, Tucson, South Tucson, Pima County and others across the state in doing what they can to stop the spread of usurious payday lenders in our neighborhoods.
Of course, the biggest reform needed is to end payday lenders’ special license to [...]

September 7, 2008

Retired Col. Gene Fenstermacher: AGAINST Prop 200: Proposal isn’t what it says it is

The Sierra Vista Herald
Commentary by Gene Fenstermacher
Special to the Herald/Review
Sunday, September 07, 2008
Don’t be misled by the title of Proposition 200, called the “Payday Loan Reform Act.” It’s not the payday loan “reform” that we need. It’s more of the same, if not worse.
The first clue to the problem is that the major [...]

September 5, 2008

Ahwatukee Foothills News: Payday loan reform act is no reform

Commentary by Mike Durham, Special to the AFN
September 3, 2008
Arizona’s Proposition 200, Payday Loan Reform Act, is confusing and overloaded with too many issues, chief of which is allowing interest rates far higher than existing state laws currently allow.
But during a hearing to amend the ballot description, Judge Sam Myers acknowledged that editing and value [...]

September 4, 2008

Left Out Arizona: There Oughta Be A Law

I’m sure you’ve seen the same brochures I have. These brochures that come in the mail (fairly frequently) calling for “reform” of the payday loan industry. They support a voter initiative (Prop 200) called the “payday loan reform act.” The cover of the brochures ask:
REAL PAYDAY LOAN REFORM
Do you think payday loan companies should be
subject [...]

August 28, 2008

Arizona Daily Star: Payday loans’ true cost is vital information

Our view: Judge should have included interest costs, details of initiative’s changes in description of Proposition 200

Tucson, Arizona | Published: 08.28.2008
It was disappointing that a judge on Tuesday rejected an effort by payday-loan opponents to inject a dose of reality in the description for Proposition 200 that will appear in the General Election Voter Pamphlet.
The [...]

August 25, 2008

Phoenix Business Journal: Group goes to court over payday loan ballot measure

Phoenix Business Journal - by Chris Casacchia
Monday, August 25, 2008

An Arizona organization trying to cap interest payments on payday loans Monday launched a statewide campaign to defeat a November ballot measure that’s backed by the largest payday trade organization in the country.
Arizonans for Responsible Lending, No on 200, debuted its new [...]

August 23, 2008

Tucson Citizen: Prop. 200 ‘reform’ is a cruel hoax

On the front page today, the Tucson Citizen warns voters in no uncertain terms: the payday loan sharks’ Prop 200 is a hoax:
“Proposition 200 takes this year’s prize as the initiative with the most misleading name.
The so-called “Payday Loan Reform Act” makes just enough phony promises to seem authentic.

But in truth, the proposition is designed [...]

August 23, 2008

Arizona Republic: Lawsuits abound as ballot-initiative deadline looms

Read today’s story by Mary Jo Pitzel in the Arizona Republic:
“In the case of Proposition 200, the payday-loan measure, opponents say the ballot language doesn’t mention what they call the key elements of the measure: that a “yes” vote would allow loans with 391 percent interest rates to continue indefinitely and that those loans would [...]

August 23, 2008

Guest Opinion by Don Carson, Little Chapel of All Nations

In a direct and convincing guest opinion in today’s Tucson Citizen, community leader Don Carson makes the case for voting NO on Prop 200.
“The title of Proposition 200 is deceptive, to say the least. The use of the word “reform” makes a mockery of the traditional definition of the word, which means “to improve.”
Two provisions [...]

May 29, 2008

AZ Daily Star: Payday loan campaign lacks credibility

Arizona Daily Star Editorial - May 29, 2008
Our view: A Predatory lending costs Arizonans millions, affords little benefit and must ’sunset’ as scheduled in 2010
If you haven’t already, you may soon be receiving a pamphlet in the mail from the payday-loan industry touting their product as “an important short-term financial option.” What the pamphlets [...]

November 30, 2006

MarketWatch: Payday Loans Cost Consumers Billions in Fees Every Year

CONSUMER WATCH
Payday for Lenders?
Steep fees on payday loans contribute to dangerous cycle of debt: Report
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Lenders are squeezing U.S. consumers for as much as $4.2 billion annually in the steep fees charged on payday loans, according to a study released Thursday by the Center for Responsible Lending and other consumer advocacy groups.
To [...]

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