We’ve been shouting this from the rooftops, but it’s always nice when someone else says it. In a story that ran yesterday, Wells Fargo spokesman Gabriel Boehmer discusses the nature of lines of credit offered to payday lenders.

Boehmer said Wells Fargo does “provide credit to a variety of responsible financial services industry companies,” including some payday lenders.

The bank is “really selective” in such lending, and its “total commitments to these customers represent a small percentage of Wells Fargo’s commercial lending portfolio,” Boehmer said. “Our philosophy is that every responsible business that complies with the law has equal access to consideration for credit at Wells Fargo.”

Boehmer stressed that payday lenders and check cashers that seek loans from Wells Fargo receive “an additional level of scrutiny,” including on-site visits to review their compliance with laws and regulations and their credit health. The due diligence occurs, he said, “because these companies are so highly regulated.”

Kinda surprised to see a story run with a customer’s payday advance experience that isn’t criticizing the product. It’s stories like these that policymakers should pay attention to when considering placing restrictions on a well-regulated product that 19 million households use annually.

Alberto Garcia, a restaurant worker from Hayward, said he had never taken out a payday loan but would “if I needed the money.” Garcia was interviewed after leaving a California Check Cashing store on the corner of Kearny and Geary streets. He said he had just purchased a money order and could imagine using a payday loan to get needed cash: “I would consider the bank, but it would be much easier to go here.”

Others may see no place else to turn. Robert Mitchell, who had just completed a Western Union transaction in a Money Mart store on Market Street, said he might take out a payday loan if he faced a deadline to pay rent or a car note, or needed money for a special occasion: “I’m willing to bite the bullet if I have to and pay a little something for that.”

Quote of the day comes from Greg Larsen, a spokesman for the California Financial Service Providers Association, a trade group of check-cashers and payday lenders. When interviewed by SF Public Press, Larsen said using an APR was an “apples to oranges” measure of the cost of a payday loan.

“People don’t use the product for 52 consecutive weeks,” he said.

Industry spokesman Larsen said consumers, when allowed a choice among a range of financial options, “will always find the credit that is the most cost effective.”

Personal finance story came out of the Sacramento Bee lamenting the criticism we always receive: High-cost, triple digit APR.

The payday loan industry … says they’re a lifesaver for cash-strapped individuals, especially in a choppy economy.

And we say, so what? Millions of customers across the country have used payday advances responsibly and appreciate having somewhere to turn when they need quick access to credit. Analysts estimate payday advances are used by 19 million American households.

The article also discussed a bill that would raise the limits on payday loans – from $300 to $500 – passing the state Assembly.

There are a couple things we want to keep in mind when it comes to restricting access to credit: Loan limits punish borrowers who have proven they can meet their financial obligations and discriminates against those who don’t have access to a wide range of financial options. Research shows that heavy-handed restrictions on payday loans have caused consumers to bounce more checks, pay more late fees, and experience more credit problems.

In a recent LA Times article, Kathy Kristof presents an argument from California Director of the Center for Responsible Lending, Paul Leonard, explaining why payday loans are “bad option”. In making this argument, Kristof and Leonard use comparisons such as food stamps, tax breaks, and credit cards among, others, as more desirable resources for short-term cash.

What Kristof and Leonard do not take the time to explain is that these resources are often difficult to come by for people in need, so payday loans are often used as alternatives to more expensive options, like bounced checks, overdraft fees, and non-sufficient funds charges. In order to really put payday loans in context, all market options must be taken into account.

With a bill currently waiting for approval in California Senate that would raise the limits for payday loans from $300 to $500, Claudia Buck wrote an article in today’s Sacramento Bee profiling both the industry and the debate over the current legislation. One of the biggest proponents of the bill at hand is its author, Assemblyman Charles Calderon.

The bill’s author, Assemblyman Charles Calderon, D-Whittier, says California’s $300 limit is one of the lowest in the country and inadequate for today’s consumers. It doesn’t help those who need quick financial help, he says, whether “to pay your student fees or keep your phone on because you’re looking for a job.”

A city councilman in California clearly doesn’t understand payday lending, hence this story:

A Daly City council member is introducing legislation that would permanently ban any new payday loan businesses from opening in the city and phase out the seven lenders who are already in town.

Newspapers love attacking the payday lending industry for campaign contributions, but they never want to offer perspective on how much other industries give to candidates. This time a California newspaper sees how many payday loan cliches it can shoehorn into a report.

The LA Times is against updating payday lending laws in California. Big shocker. This newspaper hasn’t exactly been a bastion for consumer choice.

Proponents argue that the limit, which hasn’t changed since the loans were legalized 15 years ago, is too low to meet many of the emergency needs that can lead someone to take out a payday loan.

The Times thinks it knows what consumers should be able to borrow, what lenders should be able to charge, etc. If the state had capped the cost of newspapers at a quarter it would be a different tune.

A CRL “study” claims that payday lenders are less popular than liquor stores:

“Polls and elections from across the country have demonstrated over the years that the only folks who really like payday loans are payday lenders,” said Paul Leonard, director of the California office of the Center for Responsible Lending, which sponsored the poll.