…Asks today’s poll in a Spartanburg, SC paper.  If you live in South Carolina, you can cast your vote at http://www.goupstate.com/section/opinion.  Scroll down to see poll on right-hand side.

a bounced check, a credit card late payment, or a payday loan?   The blogging world is finally getting it.

Walletpop has some good posts today. 

The study by Bretton Woods Inc. about bank fees has been post on the CFSA website. 

Some good advice here.

We missed these new posts from our friend at PDLindustryblog. 

If the government, federal or state, can tell a lender how much he or she can charge, then it can tell every doctor, lawyer and free-lance maid how much he or she can charge as well. I don’t think the wisdom and honesty of politicians can be trusted for them to have that much power over our lives; a free market system is better. Laws against deceipt and dishonesty in commerce are the regulation which is needed; businesses should be required to adequately inform potential customers everything they should know about the goods or services being offered, including, in the case of loans, potential extra charges and collection procedures in case of default.

What we need is better overall principles and less specific regulations, which in too many cases are simply ways for politicians and activists to exercise more power and control. When Crosby Stills & Nash sing “Let a man live his own life; Rules and regulations who needs them,” they may be exaggerating, but they have a point.

According to the State (S.C) Newspaper, the best way to “limit” payday loans is to “ban” payday loans.  The whole piece is an exercise in strident elitism disguised as populism.

Frankly, we can’t wait for some of these newspapers to fold so that editorial writers have the practical experience of needing short-term credit.   What will they do then?

CFSA’s Tommy Moore has a letter to the editor today in the Grand Forks (N.D.) Herald:

Eliminating payday loans as an option does not eliminate the need for short-term credit. Instead, it forces consumers to choose between more expensive alternatives such as fees for bounced checks, overdraft protection, late bill payments or even unregulated off-shore Internet lenders.

The whole thing is worth a read.

We’ve reported on these pages the concerns of Virginia legislators that lenders in the state were offering an open line of credit in addition to a regular payday loan.   A bill to prevent this service passed a Senate committee late this afternoon.  From the story: 

The legislation, SB1470, would prohibit licensed payday lenders from offering open-ended loans, which can feature soaring interest rates.

Its sponsor, Senate Majority Leader Richard Saslaw, D-Fairfax, told the Senate Commerce and Labor committee that payday lenders are pushing more expensive open-ended loans instead of the shorter term payday products whose use was regulated by the General Assembly last year.

The Pundit doesn’t know why giving consumers a choice between two services is such a concern to the legislators.  Competition among the different companies will drive the prices of these services down to their lowest possible price.