Lawmakers consider bills aimed to payday loan industry
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A panel of House lawmakers on Friday reached what supporters are touting as a compromise as consumer advocates push to rein in the payday and title loan industry in New Mexico.
The measure approved by the House Business and Industry Committee effectively eliminates payday loans by definition and bans small loans that have terms less than 120 days. It would also cap interest rates at 175 percent on certain installment loans issued by lenders that are not federally insured.
Consumer advocates have been pushing for a 36 percent interest rate cap, saying that the industry’s business model takes advantage of New Mexicans by charging exorbitant interest rates and other fees, making it difficult for the debt to ever be erased.
Republican Rep. Yvette Herrell of Alamogordo was among the bipartisan group that signed on to the measure. She said stakeholders had several meetings aimed at finding consensus on an issue that has failed year after year to gain much traction in the Legislature.
Read more: http://rdrnews.com/wordpress/blog/2017/02/24/lawmakers-consider-bills-aimed-to-payday-loan-industry/