Friday, May 02, 2008

A Little Coercion Goes A Long Way

The "payday" lenders in Ohio have been under a lot of scrutiny from the state government, groups that assist the poor, and regular citizens. However, a little arm-twisting has been going on behind the scenes.
Dispatch:

The Ohio Association of Second Harvest Food Banks withdrew from a fight for tougher payday loan regulations after being pressured by a national payday company that gave $500,000 to its parent organization.

Rent-A-Center, a Texas-based rent-to-own company that also offers payday loans, complained after learning that the food bank group was a member of the Ohio Coalition for Responsible Lending. A Second Harvest official agreed last week to drop out of the group.....

...Guy Whitcomb, a vice president at Rent-A-Center, told The Wall Street Journal that he and a co-worker called food-bank officials repeatedly to express concern about the Ohio affiliate's role in the payday lending fight....

Did that Rent-A-Center group threaten to stop their support of Second Harvest? You decide. Check the Dispatch for the full article.

Somehow I don't think we are not getting the entire story. Can you imagine the other ways that "payday lenders" might be exerting pressure on people and organizations in order to keep their profitable companies functioning?