Our Board Chair D. Lynn DeVault issued a letter to the editor of the New Orleans Times-Picayune today commenting on the editorial provided by Edward Ashworth.

Here are a few key highlights from her letter (to read the letter in its entirety, click here):

Contrary to what Mr. Ashworth suggests, the payday advance industry is currently subject to a high level of regulation and oversight in the State of Louisiana. Where payday lending occurs, each state – including Louisiana through its Office of Financial Institutions (OFI) – has thorough licensing, regulation, and enforcement processes that govern payday advance companies. Additionally, Louisiana provides statutory limits on payday advance renewals, contrary to one of the main points of focus of the article.

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Given the existing state law, as well as important industry requirements, it is not surprising that the Louisiana OFI received only 20 consumer complaints in all of 2009 regarding the payday advance industry. This incredibly low number of consumer complaints certainly calls into question Mr. Ashworth’s criticism about the OFI’s failure to “publicize the number and nature of complaints.”