Furious about the deceptive way Republicans have handled a short-term loan consumer protection bill, House Democrats in Jefferson City today employed a little-used maneuver and had the bill pulled out of an unfriendly committee.

The bill now must be placed on the House calendar for debate.

For hardworking Missourians, a payday advance can be a sensible choice for managing financial difficulties. In addition to being less expensive and credit-damaging, it is also simple, convenient and fully transparent in terms of cost and fees.

To protect the massive profits “earned” from exploiting poor and working people……

An assertion defied by the evidence.  As we’ve said here many times before, the public companies in the industry make profits of between four and eight percent on revenue.    “Massive” they are not.

Republican leaders blocked an attempt late yesterday by state Rep. Mary Still, D-Columbia, to get a payday loan reform bill onto the House floor for consideration.

Since Democrat Mary Still’s bill seeking tighter controls on the payday loan industry has yet to be assigned to a legislative committee for hearings, she decided to hold hearings on her own.

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But Tom Linafelt, director of communications for QC Holdings — the company the operates Quick Cash — told the News Leader prior to the hearings that payday loans are meant to be short-term loans for just two weeks. He contends that focusing on the APR can be misleading.”Much like you wouldn’t take a cab across the state or rent a hotel room for a year, neither would you take a payday loan for a year,” Linafelt said.

For those who have difficulty meeting their loan obligations, payday lenders offer extended payment plans that provide an additional two months to pay off what was originally a two-week loan, without additional fees.

Proposed Missouri legislation that includes a 36 percent APR cap would eliminate the industry and an estimated 10,000 jobs, $379 million in annual wages, $147 million in tax revenue and more than $20 million in commercial real estate lease payments.

Now is not the time to deny an important credit option for those who need it most, nor is it time to eliminate Missouri jobs.