Lawmaker is Suing PayDay Lenders

SOUTH CAROLINA
Lawmaker aims to ban payday lending
State Sen. Hawkins is also suing industry on behalf of clients

SPARTANBURG --
A state lawmaker who is suing payday lenders on behalf of clients says now he wants to pass legislation that would ban the industry in South Carolina.

State Sen. John Hawkins, R-Spartanburg, said the industry is too profitable and powerful to accept regulation.

"I've come to realize they are similar to video poker in that regard," Hawkins said. "And they've used every trick in the book to fight real regulations."

But, a spokesman for industry leader Advance America Cash Advance Centers, based in Spartanburg, said Hawkins' dual roles in the State house and in the lawsuit present an "interesting dilemma."

"It puts our company in an awkward position, and it puts the people of South Carolina in an awkward position," said Jamie Fulmer, director of investor relations for Advance America.

Hawkins says there is no conflict between his duties as a lawmaker and his job representing his client.

"I'm not going to set aside my Senate role just because I'm involved in a lawsuit brought by people who have been harmed by these companies," Hawkins said. "I'm comfortable with my actions."

The industry has increasingly come under attack for what some say are excessive charges. The short-term loans charge fees of about $15 for every $100 borrowed. That can add up to an annualized percentage rate of nearly 400 percent for a two-week loan.

Customers typically are low-income, and advocates for the poor say the lenders create a cycle of borrowing that can sink someone living from paycheck to paycheck.

Supporters of the industry say it gives people access to emergency money when they have no other resources. They point to fees banks charge for bounced checks -- sometimes over $30 regardless of the check amount -- that if annualized would equal even higher interest rates.

Some states have passed interest rate caps on the loans. When Oregon capped interest at 36 percent a year, Advance America stopped doing business there. Other states, including neighboring North Carolina, have banned the industry altogether.

S.C. Sen. Robert Ford, D-Charleston, introduced a bill last session to ban payday loans in the state, but Hawkins pushed a compromise effort that instead put several restrictions on the businesses aimed at preventing customers from taking out multiple loans or taking out new loans to pay off old ones.

Hawkins said he abandoned the regulation route because the industry resisted and because he feared Gov. Mark Sanford would veto the bill.

"You've got a governor who has climbed on board with the payday lenders using free-market reforms as his reasoning," Hawkins said. "I'm certain he would veto a bill imposing more regulations based on that ideological basis."

Sanford spokesman Joel Sawyer said the governor favors informing consumers about what they are getting rather than putting restrictions on lenders. But, Sawyer said, the governor gives every bill that comes to his desk fair consideration.

Fulmer said unreasonable regulations will put companies out of business and that would hurt consumers.

"If you eliminate the product, you aren't eliminating the need for the product," Fulmer said. "That does nothing to solve the problem."