Return of the Payday Loan Bill!
Well folks, we knew they’d be back, and here they are.
On Tuesday, the Senate Appropriations Committee will hear a “Strike-Everything Amendment” that would reauthorize payday loans: HB2370
Call the Committee Members today and tell them:
“Vote NO on HB2370. Enough is enough!”
Sen. Rebecca Rios, Pinal County — (602) 926-5685
Sen. Amanda Aguirre, Yuma — (602) 926-4139
Sen. Sylvia Allen, Snowflake — (602) 926-5219
Sen. David Braswell, Phoenix, Glendale, Cave Creek — (602) 926-5284
(newly appointed senator; replaced Pamela Gorman)
Sen. Ron Gould, Lake Havasu City — (602) 926-4138
Sen. Jack Harper, Surprise — (602) 926-4178
Sen. Al Melvin, Tucson — (602) 926-4326
Sen. Paula Aboud, Tucson — (602) 926-5262
Sen. Russell Pearce, Mesa — COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN — (602) 926-5760
A “Strike Everything Amendment” is a fancy way of saying: we don’t need to tell the public what we’re doing; we’ll pass a completely different bill by changing the language at the last minute.
In this case, HB2370, when it passed out of the House of Representatives and was sent to the Senate, dealt with merchandise pallets. Yup, those.
Now, bill sponsor Warde Nichols (East Valley) is allowing it to be used to push the payday lenders’ agenda, and Sen. Russell Pearce is complying.
They haven’t yet posted the language of the bill, but we know it won’t be good. At the very least, it will attempt to extend or repeal the July 1, 2010 payday loan sunset, the same sunset we all voted to uphold.
The payday lenders are running ads again, sending more junk mail to voters, and flooding your representatives’ email boxes with appeals to let them stay.
They’re still promising “reforms” and trying to make the case that what they are proposing now is different than Prop 200. But if their last bill is any indication, what they’re proposing now is just more of the same.
Please call the Appropriations Committee Members right now. Tell them, “No extensions. No more special deals for payday lenders. No more laws that hurt consumers and undermine the free market.”
Payday lenders need to cap their loans at 36% APR like other lenders, which is exactly what will happen when we uphold the 2010 Sunset.
And Mark Your Calendars:
Tuesday, March 16th
1:30 PM*
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE
Arizona Senate, Hearing Room 109
1700 West Washington
Phoenix, AZ 85007
* Time may change. We’ll keep you updated.
The payday lenders will try to pack the house with their “satisfied customers” and employees. We need to turn out in big numbers.
Think you can make it?
Let Kelly know – kelly@economicintegrity.org
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Contact the Committee Members TODAY! Your message can be short and to the point:
- The voters have spoken. We said “No” to 400% payday loans loud and clear.
- HB 2370, if it allows triple-digit interest rates to continue, is NOT reform.
- Allowing triple-digit payday lending to continue will result in thousands more Arizonans trapped in debt, year after year.
- We cannot allow out-of-state companies to continue to drain $150 million dollars from the state each year in fees stripped from trapped borrowers.
- Do what the voters demanded: LET THE SUN SET on 400%
To see the Prop 200 results in each of these senator’s districts, click here. In every district, their constituents said “NO” to 400%!
Thank you,
Debbie McCune Davis
PS: For tools you can download and share, visit the “Supporter Tools” box at www.NoMoreLoanSharks.com
Paid for by Arizonans for Responsible Lending
Major Funding by AARP Arizona
Center for Responsible Lending, N.C., SEIU, Washington, and SIMG, Tucson.
Additional Support from Arizona State Credit Union, UFCW Local 99
The Arizona Credit Union League, and Mi Familia Vota.