Stop Payday Lending in Pennsylvania!

HB 2429, which would allow predatory payday lending in Pennsylvania, is scheduled for a committee vote on Wednesday, June 6.

Pennsylvania currently has one of the strongest laws against payday lending in the country. If passed, HB 2429 would weaken the law by creating loopholes that payday lenders can use to charge exorbitant rates. Under this law, lenders could charge interest of up to 300%. You can read more about the proposed legislation here. You can also read a policy brief about "credit services" lending here.

Research from the U.S. Department of Defense and experience of other states show that payday loans are damaging enough to require a 36% annual rate cap on fees and interest for payday loans made to active duty military families. Payday loans hurt our communities and should not be given a foothold in PA.

Take Action:

• Please take a moment to contact members of the House Commerce Committee and ask them to oppose this bill. The Stop Predatory Payday Loans in PA Coalition has a sample letter (below) that you can email or fax to the Committee. 
• Sign on to a letter opposing the bill here.

Sample Letter:

Chairman Ellis, Chairman Thomas and Members of the House Commerce Committee:

I am writing on behalf of [myself and my family, OR insert your organization name here, and include an explanation about your group.]

We urge you to oppose HB 2429, which would open the floodgates to predatory payday lending in Pennsylvania. The bill, which was only recently filed, is scheduled for a Committee vote on Wednesday.

Pennsylvania has one of the strongest laws in the country to guard against predatory lending, with a cap on fees and interest that has kept high-cost payday lenders at bay. HB 2429, “An act regulating credit services,” would weaken our law. If passed, the bill would allow payday lenders to evade the state’s strong interest rate cap by posing as loan brokers in order to charge unlimited fees and make triple-digit interest rate loans.

HB 2429 explicitly would create a loophole in our state lending law by providing that the broker fee is not considered interest. Payday lenders exploit similar loopholes in several other states and become credit services organizations (CSOs) for the sole purpose of evading interest rate caps that would otherwise prevent debt trap loans.

The loans they charge under this scheme have interest rates of over 300%.

In states where they are legal, payday loans cause individuals significant harm. Borrowers become trapped in high-cost debt that leads them to fall behind on other bills, to overdraft and lose their bank accounts, and to file for bankruptcy. The last thing Pennsylvanians need is predatory payday lending.
Our organization has been working with over 100 other Pennsylvania groups for the last several years to keep these predatory loans out of our state. For more information, visit www.stoppaydayloanspa.com.

Please do everything you can to stop this bill from passing. Please let me know of your position on this issue.

Thank you,

[Name
Organization (if applicable)
Contact Information]