City of Philadelphia - File #: 120350

• File #: 120350
• Version: 0
• Type: Resolution
• Status: ADOPTED
• File created: 5/3/2012
• In control: CITY COUNCIL
• Final action: 5/10/2012
• Title: Urging the Pennsylvania General Assembly to oppose House Bill 2191 that will legalize payday lending in Pennsylvania and harm the citizens of our Commonwealth.
• Sponsors: Councilmember Tasco, Councilmember Jones, Councilmember Johnson, Councilmember Goode, Councilmember Kenney, Councilmember Greenlee, Council President Clarke, Councilmember O'Neill, Councilmember Oh, Councilmember Squilla, Councilmember Quiñones Sánchez, Councilmember O'Brien, Councilmember Green, Councilmember Reynolds Brown, Councilmember Henon, Councilmember Blackwell, Councilmember Bass

Date	Ver.	Action By	Action	Result	Tally
5/10/2012	0	CITY COUNCIL	ADOPTED
5/3/2012	0	CITY COUNCIL	Introduced and Ordered Placed On Next Week's Final Passage Calendar	Pass

Title
Urging the Pennsylvania General Assembly to oppose House Bill 2191 that will legalize payday lending in Pennsylvania and harm the citizens of our Commonwealth.
Body
WHEREAS, Predatory payday lending costs Americans some $3.5 billion annually and 76% of payday loan revenue is due to borrowers' inability to pay back initial loans and must take out repetitive payday loans in what has been described as a "debt trap"; and

WHEREAS, Under Pennsylvania's long-standing usury laws, payday lending is illegal and Pennsylvania has saved its citizens approximately $233 million annually by limiting the annual interest rates on small dollar loans to about 24%; and

WHEREAS, Predatory payday lending has long been illegal in Pennsylvania, and the Pennsylvania Supreme Court recently has upheld enforcement actions by the PA Department of Banking against online payday lenders operating illegally; and

WHEREAS, House Bill 2191 creates a regulatory scheme for the operation of payday lenders in Pennsylvania and attempts to regulate online payday lenders under the guise that this legislation provides consumer protections to Pennsylvanians; and

WHEREAS, The best form of consumer protections for Pennsylvanians is to not legalize payday lending in Pennsylvania by allowing House Bill 2191 to become law; and

WHEREAS, House Bill 2191 does not provide consumer protections for Pennsylvanians because it legalizes various predatory features of payday loans including triple-digit interest rates up to 419% APR, short minimum loan terms which are the borrowers' next pay day, single balloon payments forcing borrowers to repay the entire loan including all interest and fees on the next pay day, and requiring post-dated checks or pre-authorized electronic debits as security for payday loans; and

WHEREAS, Numerous organizations across Pennsylvania oppose House Bill 2191 and these groups have formed a coalition entitle...