House Bid to Ax Payday Rule Kicks Off With Bipartisan Support

Bloomberg Law cited Daniel Press on the leadership expressed by House lawmakers for blocking a law that would impede upon the loan-granting process that would effect millions of Americans who might find themselves in a financial bind and need assistance.

A House resolution to repeal the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s small-dollar lending rule was introduced Dec.1 by a bipartisan group of lawmakers.

The legislation uses the Congressional Review Act to halt the bureau’s regulatory crackdown on payday lenders and prevent it from issuing similar regulations in the future.

The resolution is sponsored by Rep. Dennis Ross (R-Fla.) and cosponsored by Reps. Alcee Hastings (D-Fla.), Tom Graves (R-Ga.), Henry Cuellar (D-Texas), Steve Stivers (R-Ohio) and Collin Peterson (D-Minn.).

The CFPB cracked down on payday lenders in October. The final rule, five years in the making, requires payday lenders to determine upfront whether consumers have the ability to repay their loans. The rule also places limits on repeat loans. It goes into effect Jan. 16 — but most sections carry a compliance date of Aug. 19, 2019.

The House resolution comes a month after President Donald Trump signed a measure approved by both houses of Congress that repealed a CFPB rule that prevents financial firms from steering customer disputes into arbitration.

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Daniel Press, a policy analyst at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, praised House lawmakers for showing leadership. “If implemented, the rule would leave millions of Americans in a real bind at exactly the time they need a fast loan to cover an urgent expense,” he said in a statement.

Read the full article at Bloomberg Law.