Kansas City infoZine
June 2, 2016
CFPB Proposes Rule to End Payday Debt Traps
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) proposed a rule aimed at ending payday debt traps by requiring lenders to take steps to make sure consumers have the ability to repay their loans.
FOX4KC
June 2, 2016
New rule proposal aims to end to payday loan debt traps
The CFPB presented the rule during a hearing Thursday at the Kansas City Convention Center. Representatives from church groups, consumer advocates and people who have become victims of payday loan interest rates and fees spoke out regarding the new rule that would require payday lenders to make sure consumers have the ability to repay their loans before they sign on the dotted line.
The Kansas City Star
June 2, 2016
Payday lenders, consumer advocates battle in Kansas City over proposed loan rules
Kansas City Mayor Sly James kicked off the event with his own prescriptions for the ills that he said predatory lending causes. He said lenders deserve a legitimate profit but borrowers deserve more time to repay loans they have trouble meeting and lawmakers should cap “these outrageous triple-digit interest rates” some loans carry.
KMBC Kansas City
June 2, 2016
Public weighs in on need for new payday loan regulations
People rallied at an event in Kansas City Thursday in hopes of stopping others from piling up large payday loan debts.
Reprints: Kansas City Sun Times
KSHB Kansas City
June 2, 2016
Proposed rule to end payday debt traps announced in Kansas City
Federal regulators were in Kansas City to announce proposed changes to the payday lending industry. These will be the first rules regulating short-term loans on the national level.
Kansas City Star
June 2, 2016
Payday debt traps were focus of a public hearing in Kansas City Thursday
Payday lenders will have to make sure their customers can repay their loans and “still meet basic living expenses and major financial obligations” under a slate of federal rules to be proposed Thursday.
Kansas City Star
June 2, 2016
Federal regulators look to severely curb payday lending
Federal regulators proposed a significant clampdown on payday lenders and other high interest loans on Thursday, the first nationwide attempt to address an industry widely thought of as taking advantage of the poor and desperate.
Reprints: Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette
More coverage:
KMBZ Kansas City | Proposed rules set to regulate payday loan companies
The Pitch
June 2, 2016
KC’s CFPB hearing on payday lending today a reminder just who keeps defending an indefensible industry
The federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau couldn’t have picked a better spot than Kansas City for a hearing on payday lending. Friends and foes have been dug in for years, and Thursday’s forum, at the Music Hall, brought everybody out of the trenches.
KSNT Topeka
June 2, 2016
Is there a new alternative for payday lenders?
A University of Kansas professor was in Kansas City today to discuss predatory payday lending. Regulators are saying borrowers need to be protected from practices that potentially turn into debt traps.
KCUR Kansas City
June 2, 2016
Hundreds Rally Downtown At Public Hearing On Proposed Payday Loan Rules
Church members, union workers and community groups chanted outside the Music Hall and made the case during a public comment session that Missouri’s lax laws allow payday and other short-term lenders to exploit borrowers.
—–National Press Clips——
NPR
June 2, 2016
New Rules To Ban Payday Lending ‘Debt Traps’
Watchdog groups for decades have been critical of payday lenders. “The lesson from the last 20 years since this industry started is that it’s been remarkably effective at evading attempts at regulation and using a very high-powered lobbying machine to push for loopholes,” says Mike Calhoun, the president of the Center for Responsible Lending.
Reprint: KABC
SALON
June 2, 2016
Loan shark loopholes: New regulation proposal won’t do enough to rein in predatory payday lenders, consumer groups say
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau proposed new regulations on Thursday that could help rein in predatory payday loans, short-term lendings that come with high interest rates that often exceed 300 percent. Consumer protection groups, however, warn that they may not do enough.
Forbes
June 2, 2016
Payday Loans Could Soon Change In A Very Big Way
Under the proposed rules, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau would require lenders to consider a borrower’s ability to repay the loan by checking their income, borrowing history and important financial obligations. The rules would also put a cap on the number of loans that can be made in quick succession and curtail the ways in which lenders can seek repayment.
The Atlantic
June 2, 2016
Payday Loan Rule: Progress, but Still a Long Way to Go
The long-awaited rule includes provisions that would require lenders to determine that borrowers can repay their debt by assessing their credit history and means. It would restrict the number of short-term rollover loans borrowers can take in succession to prevent what’s known as a “debt spiral.” It would also require borrowers to be notified when a lender plans to deduct funds from their bank account and rein in a lender’s ability to repeatedly attempt to deduct those funds.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
June 2, 2016
Federal regulators propose restrictions on payday lenders
The proposals, if enacted intact, are likely to cause a nationwide contraction and restructuring of the $38 billion payday loan industry. Payday lending is often thought of as an exploitative, deceptive industry that traps desperate borrowers in cycles of debt that can last for months. Roughly half of all states ban payday lending outright or have caps on how much payday lenders can charge in interest, which often carry annual rates north of 300 percent.
Chicago Tribune
June 2, 2016
Federal regulators propose restrictions on payday lenders
Federal regulators are proposing a significant clampdown on payday lenders and other providers of high-interest loans, saying borrowers need to be protected from practices that wind up turning into “debt traps” for many.
The Huffington Post
June 2, 2016
The Obama Administration Cracks Down On Payday Lenders
For the first time, there will soon be broad rules protecting U.S. borrowers from being stuck in a spiral of debt from loans that typically have rates of 390 percent and often higher.
USA Today
June 2, 2016
Battle over payday loan industry begins
Battling over a proposed new rule on payday loans began Thursday, with supporters saying it would protect needy borrowers and opponents warning it would cut access to credit and threatening a lawsuit.
Think Progress
June 2, 2016
New Rules On Predatory Lenders ‘Miss Historic Opportunity’ To Protect Desperate People
New national regulations introduced Thursday are supposed to help ensure that payday loan borrowers really can get out of debt swiftly and smoothly. But the proposal is already disappointing consumer advocates, who say it contains too many loopholes and too little real protection for borrowers.
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
June 2, 2016
Federal regulators propose new restrictions on payday, auto title loans
Federal regulators are proposing a significant clampdown on payday lenders and other providers of high-interest loans, saying borrowers need to be protected from practices that wind up turning into “debt traps” for many. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s proposed regulations, announced Thursday, seek to tackle two common complaints about the payday lending industry.
Christian Science Monitor
June 2, 2016
How the feds want to protect consumers from payday loans
In the pipeline for some time, the controls seek to address a practice that provides a service, lending typically small amounts of cash on a short-term basis, but at significant cost, often charging triple-digit interest rates and stacking up overdraft fees against the borrowers.
CBS Money Watch
June 2, 2016
Payday loan rules may not be tough enough
Consumer advocates widely agree that the federal government needs to rein in payday lending firms. Less certain is whether new rules proposed today by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will do the trick.
—–Local Press Conference Clips (outside KC)——-
WSAU
June 2, 2016
Payday Lending Public Forum In Wausau Wednesday
The North Central Area Congregations Organized To Make An Impact (NAOMI) and the Wisconsin Public Interest Research Group (WISPIRG) hosted the event ahead of an announcement from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau regarding payday lending and its potential predatory nature. WISPIRG Director Peter Skopec hopes that the announcement will be good news for those seeking more regulations on the loans.
Reprints: WNCY, WHBL, WTAQ
More coverage:
WSAU | Payday Lending Panel From NAOMI and WISPIRG
NBC Montana
June 3, 2016
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau proposes new payday lending rule
Since 2010 Montana has not allowed high-cost payday lending, something Gail Gutsche, with the Montana Organizing Project, says they’re better off without.
“If the borrower cannot repay the loan because the borrower has so many separate expenses, then it doesn’t make sense to take the loan,” Gutsche said.
Philadelphia Inquirer
June 3, 2016
Don’t undermine state laws against payday loans, CFPB urged
Pennsylvania and New Jersey don’t allow payday lending. And state consumer groups want it to stay that way, as a federal agency proposes sweeping new rules to address payday lenders around the country.
Augusta Free Press
June 2, 2016
Virginia Organizing, VPLC release report on predatory lending
Virginia Organizing and Virginia Poverty Law Center, organizations that have been working to stop predatory lending practices in Virginia for many years, released a Virginia predatory lending report showing the negative effect of high interest, short-term loans. Leaders of the organizations also reacted to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) new proposed rules announced in Kansas City earlier that day.
Times Free Press
June 2, 2016
Tennessee consumer advocates say proposed federal curbs on payday lenders a ‘good start’
The head of a Tennessee-based consumer advocacy group lauded as a ‘good start’ the federal Consumer Finance Protection Bureau’s proposed rules on small-dollar lending by the payday and car title loan industry.
Fox 59 Indianapolis
June 2, 2016
New rule proposed to change payday lending’s “predatory practices”
“It’s important to think about interest rates,” says Kelsey Clayton, Indiana Assets and Opportunity Network’s manager. “ Those exorbitant levels of interest rate is not reasonable lending.”
Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is proposing a rule that would likely force payday lenders to decrease their interest rates or turn away customers.
WSFA Montgomery
June 2, 2016
New crackdown announced on payday loan industry
Federal regulators announced on Thursday that a proposed set of rules, designed to protect people from what critics call debt traps, has been introduced.
Advocacy groups here in Alabama are urging consumers to support the proposal to tighten short term lending regulations.
Reprint: WTVM
Houston Chronicle
June 2, 2016
New federal rules on payday lenders add teeth to new local laws
A federal regulator issued new rules today that could fundamentally transform the $38.5 billion small-dollar loan industry, which has already been set back on its heels by restrictive ordinances in dozens of Texas cities and towns.
More coverage:
News Channel 10 Amarillo | Consumer Financial Protection Bureau proposes new payday loan rules
Reveal
June 2, 2016
New rules could upend payday loan industry
High-cost loans will be reined in under new rules unveiled today that promise to radically overhaul the payday loan industry.
Cleveland.com
June 2. 2016
Payday lenders in Ohio charge 591 percent interest; what will happen to them under new rules?
Proposed new rules to restrict payday loans and auto title loans nationwide have unleashed an avalanche of criticism, most of it from the industry known for charging interest rates of 300 percent or more on small loans.
The Commercial Appeal
June 2, 2016
Tenn. consumer rights group supports proposed federal regulation of payday, title lenders
A Tennessee consumer-rights group gave its support Thursday for a federal agency’s proposed new rule to regulate the small-loan industry, which the group says siphons about $400 million a year in interest and fees from mostly low-income Tennesseans.
Inquisitr
June 2, 2016
New CFPB Payday Loan Rules Will Protect Consumers From Risky Financial Products
Federal regulators plan to launch a near-killing blow to the payday loan industry. New rules proposed by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will impose a complicated set of guidelines meant to protect consumers from high-interest, low-dollar loans, but may put many lenders in jeopardy.
Argus Leader
June 2, 2016
New report could quiet call for payday lending reform in S.D.
A proposal from the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau could muffle the call to implement interest rate caps for payday lenders at the ballot box in November, a political expert said Thursday.
Houston Chronicle
June 2, 2016
New federal rules on payday lenders add teeth to new local laws
A federal regulator issued new rules Thursday that could fundamentally transform the $38.5 billion small-dollar loan industry, which has already been set back on its heels by restrictive ordinances in dozens of Texas cities and towns.
The News & Observer
June 2, 2016
Advocates urge support of proposed short-term lending rules
Civil rights advocacy groups and others are praising a federal proposal announced Thursday that seeks to tighten short-term lending regulations and are urging consumers to weigh in during a 90-day public comment period.
WORT FM
June 3, 2016
Could New Payday Loan Rule Make It Harder To Get Credit In A Pinch?
[Listen for full story]
A federal watch-dog agency proposed a new measure Thursday to rein in predatory payday lending. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau rule would require lenders to screen potential borrowers for their ability to pay back the total loan amount without having to borrow more money within a month’s time.
Wisconsin Public Radio
June 2, 2016
Wisconsin Consumer Advocates Cheer Proposed Payday Lending Regulations
Representatives from consumer advocacy groups Citizin Action Wisconsin, WISPIRG and Eau Claire-based JONAH held a rally to support a plan from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that would require lenders to verify borrowers can repay loans and restrict repeated borrowing. Peter Skopec of the advocacy group WISPIRG said the payday lending model preys on the poor.
WEAU TV Eau Claire
June 2, 2016
Protesters gathered in Eau Claire against payday lending
The protesters say payday lending is out of control and burying people in debt. But a new proposed rule might help those who borrow money.
WQOW TV Eau Claire
June 2, 2016
Supporters of payday loan regulations rally in Eau Claire
Supporters of proposed government regulations on payday loans held a rally Wednesday in Eau Claire. Payday loans are often known as a quick fix for cash, but the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is proposing three big changes for the short-term loans that typically carry high interest rates and could keep borrowers in endless cycles of debt.
——-National Media Coverage———-
The New York Times
June 2, 2016
Payday Loans’ Debt Spiral to Be Curtailed
People who borrow money against their paychecks are generally supposed to pay it back within two weeks, with substantial fees piled on: A customer who borrows $500 would typically owe around $575, at an annual percentage rate of 391 percent. But most borrowers routinely roll the loan over into a new one, becoming less likely to ever emerge from the debt.
USA Today
June 2, 2016
New CFPB proposal aims at ‘payday debt traps’
The rule proposal followed a 2014 CFPB study that found roughly 62% of all payday loans — often due within two weeks and carrying an annual interest rate of approximately 390% — go to consumers who repeatedly extend their repayments and ultimately owe more in fees than what they initially borrowed.
Gawker
June 2, 2016
Payday Loans to Be Marginally Less Terrible
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (an agency that you can thank Elizabeth Warren for) today announced a proposed rule aimed at making the payday loan industry—which lends relatively small amounts of money to poor people at exorbitant interest rates—somewhat less blatantly terrible.
Time Money
June 2, 2016
New Rule Reins in Payday Lending “Debt Traps”
The consumer protection agency is stepping in to regulate the $38 billion payday and auto title loan industry, which has been controlled r state-by-state. Currently, about 16,000 payday loan stores operate in 36 states, according to the CFPB.
U.S. News and World Report
June 2, 2016
Obama Administration Takes Aim at ‘Predatory’ Payday Loans
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau – which began its operations in 2011 and was originally the brainchild of Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass. – unveiled regulations on Thursday that will put greater scrutiny on who can access payday loans and how often recipients can roll over debt payments.
borrowers can afford to repay debts.