USA Today reports on a new study that shows “credit card issuers slashed credit for an estimated 24 million borrowers who paid their bills on time, and a third of those consumers saw some drop in their credit scores during a six-month period.”

New article in Mens News Daily looks at the federal response to the financial meltdown.

Common sense dictates implementation of a structural reconstruction. The proposed Consumer Financial Protection Agency would only be an ill-defined expansion of the government payroll, proliferating government reach into more corners of society when there are agencies already entrusted to protect consumers are not doing their jobs. Proposing the launch of such an inappropriate meddling amoeba is evidence of government ignorance of the realities on Wall Street.

CBS News financial adviser Ray Martin explained the changes on the “The Early Show” this morning.

AP reports.

A reminder…to qualify for a payday loan a customer must have proof of steady income.

Today’s editorial.

The editorial , among other things, says that check cashers fill a “legitimate need”; that legislation to restrict check cashers “misses the point”;  says that check cashers locate “where there is demand for their services” and concludes that “the proposed restrictions are draconian.”

WSJ: What to Expect As New Rules on Credit Cards Take Effect

The bulk of the legislation’s key provisions will take effect in February 2010, including limits on interest-rate increases on existing balances. The following July will see the introduction of new disclosure rules, drafted and approved by the Federal Reserve Board and other banking regulators.

In anticipation of the legislation, major card issuers have been raising interest rates and fees, reducing credit lines and closing accounts.

Boston Herald reports that state regulators are cracking down on internet lenders.  Just want to remind everyone that members of CFSA are required to follow the laws of the state of the borrower, per Best Practices.

Kenneth King writes,

Payday lenders should not be legislated out of business as they provide a niche in the financial marketplace. I have been an advocate for the “unbanked” and “under-served” population for several years. When I approached the credit unions and other financial institutions about serving these groups, their response has always been, “We can’t make any money with that market” and the risk is too great for the return.

A new survey details the late and over limit fees charged by 39 different credit cards.  The average late fee was found to be $28.19.