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The protesters handed out fliers and carried posters that read: Check into cash = Check into debt, Payday Lending, It’s Not A Service, It’s A Trap and 390% interest!? The often-high interest rates charged by payday loan institutions have been a hot topic lately in Virginia and across the nation, with many consumer groups and citizen activists urging legislators to rein in the industry. Protesters on Friday said they want the state General Assembly to cap interest rates for such loans at 36 percent, said Larry Yates, a protest organizer who wore a red baseball cap with 36% written on it. The General Assembly, which considered but did not pass several payday loan measures earlier this year, begins its 2008 session next month.
“These kinds of loans are ridiculous”, said Ashley Hogan, a 19-year-old James Madison University student. Background: Although most lenders in Virginia are already limited to 36 percent APR, in 2002, the General Assembly created an exception for payday lenders, Yates explained. The legislation, called the Virginia Payday Lending Act of 2002, allows lenders to charge $15 for every $100 loaned for two weeks. That’s an annual percentage rate of 390 percent. In their 2007 session, state legislators introduced 16 bills to repeal the 2002 act, or reform the $1.2 billion industry. Lawmakers had considered creating a database to track loans from payday institutions and limit borrowers to three loans at a time. Those measures failed, however. There are nine payday-lending businesses in Harrisonburg, according to the State Corporation Commission. The upcoming General Assembly session is pretty much a do or die situation, Yates said. The Protest Although Friday’s march was peaceful, three members of the Harrisonburg Police Department responded to a call that protesters were interacting with customers, police on the scene said. The protesters, however, stayed on the sidewalks and notified the police early Friday morning about their march, both requirements of legal protests, said Sgt. R. Knott with the HPD. Abraham Hall, a native of the Washington, D.C., area, was one of the protesters. He is a former payday loan manager in Washington. In September, he quit his job because it challenged his conscience. The goal of these lenders is to get people trapped, to get them to come back again and again Hall said. They can’t get out; the industry won’t let them. Chris Gatesman, who works for James Madison University Student Affairs, agreed. “Institutions like this prey on folks”, Gatesman said. I can sit at home and steam or I can come make a difference, so here I am. Managers from both businesses declined to comment. By Heather Bowser From: rocktownweekly.com 2 Comments for 'Protest Targets Payday Loans'Leave a comment |
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