The paper can’t stand the fact that the payday lending industry won the ballot language wars. Now they are whining and pointing fingers at the Secretary of State. Hell hath no fury like a Cleveland Plain Dealer editorial writer scorned. From the story:
What irks pro-consumer, yes-on-5 groups is that failing to cite the 391 percent APRs tilts the ballot to favor the lenders. They hate mentions of 391 percent APRs because that number dooms their cause. {Secretary of State} Brunner said board members differed about how to correctly express a maximum APR. That’s funny. Ohio’s No. 1 lawyer, Rogers, wrote July 10 that the Check-Cashing Lender Law — which a “no” vote saves — “caps annual interest rates at 391 percent.” The Ballot Board can sheath its slide-rule.
Get over it.
2 responses so far ↓
1 Alan H // Aug 24, 2008 at 5:28 am
Maybe Brunner realizes that APR does not reflect the proper rate as a payday loan is generally for two weeks not for a year. If the APR was really 391% wouldnt that hundred dollar loan cost $391.00?
2 Glenn // Aug 24, 2008 at 7:32 am
Good grief.The Plain Dealer knows very well that “391%” is nothing but an example – yet it keeps printing this falsification as if it were law. This number is not the current rate cap for payday loans. In fact, this number doesn’t appear in either the old or new laws. 391% is an example made up to make payday loans look bad, based on “rolling over” one loan 26 times in a year. This practice is ILLEGAL in Ohio and it can not occur in real life.
Issue 5 permits the new loan law to take effect so that any institution can offer loans under the 28% cap. The only change it makes to 545 is it leaves the current law in place too. What’s wrong with enabling both loan products at once and allowing the consumer to choose between the two? You know the answer – the Plain Dealer doesn’t get to make the call.
Kudos to Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner for being one of the few honest politicians in the state. Vote NO on Issue 5 and let the public make the payday lending decision.
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