States look to crack down on payday lenders, By Elaine S. Povich, May 2, 2014, Stateline: “The demise this week of a Louisiana bill that would have reined in payday lending demonstrates how hard it is for states to regulate the quick loan industry, which consumer groups criticize as a trap for the working poor. Supporters say payday lenders, which emerged in the 1990s, provide a valuable service to lower income borrowers when they need small amounts of money to tide them over from one paycheck to the next. But critics say payday lenders lock desperate people into repeat loan cycles with annual interest rates that can approach 600 percent. An estimated 12 million borrowers use payday loans each year…”
Poverty-related issues in the news, from the Institute for Research on Poverty