Payday Lending

Don't let payday lobby buy the election!

Have you seen the payday lenders new ad? Chances are you have! The payday lenders have bought up quite a bit of airtime during the Olympics to try to convince Ohioans that they need 391% interest! The payday lobby is attempting to overturn House Bill 545, which caps interest rates on payday loans at 28% APR, down from their typical 391% APR. Their Olympic ad buy is in keeping with other efforts they've made across the U.S. The payday lobby has spent millions upon millions in other states to protect profits they have earned off the backs of the desperate and the poor.

In Arizona, the payday lobby has spent over $8.7 million to collect signatures to get an initiative successfully on November's ballot. The national payday lobby, CFSA, is behind the initiative, not "citizens of Arizona." Check out this quote from an article in the Arizona Republic: "Grass roots? Nope. Not yet anyway…likewise, nearly every sent of the $8.7 million dumped into a ballot effort benefiting the payday-loan industry has been donated by - guess who? - a trade group representing the payday lenders: the Arizona Community Financial Services Association." You can view the article in its entirety, here: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2008/07/30/200807....

In Virginia, the national payday lobby has spent roughly $20 million to "buy" higher interest rates from the Virginia General Assembly (payday lenders can now charge 592% APR!). You can read about that here: http://www.inrich.com/cva/ric/news/business.apx.-content-articles-RTD-20....

In Ohio, the sole donor to the "citizen referendum" campaign know as Ohioans for Financial Freedom, is also CFSA, which has already spent $850,000 in less than 6 months (not including their Olympic ad buy).

The only argument the payday lenders have involves throwing around the words "freedom" and "choice" over and over again. However, it should be clear that any industry using the argument that people should have the "right to make bad decisions", doesn't deserve our vote or our money!

The payday lobby's ads tell you to sign their petitions to keep 391% interest. Don't be fooled! They aren't here to help us, they are here to protect their billions made in Ohio!