Latest news with #SenateBill35
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Alaska Legislature votes to limit high interest rates and fees for payday loan lenders
A payday advance neon sign is seen in this undated photo. (Photo) On the 120th and last day of Alaska's annual legislative session, the state House passed a bill that would curb high interest rates and fees for payday loans of $25,000 or less. The Senate passed Senate Bill 35 in late April, and the House passed the bill Tuesday by a vote of 24 to 16. The bill now is set to be transmitted to Gov. Mike Dunleavy's desk. If the bill becomes law, it would remove payday lenders from an exemption in state lending laws and cap interest rates and fees at an annual percentage rate, or APR, of 36% for loans of $25,000 or less. Anchorage Democrats Sen. Forrest Dunbar and Rep. Ted Eischeid sponsored the legislation in the Senate and House. 'This bill closes a harmful special exemption that has allowed lenders to charge outrageous interest rates on small loans,' Dunbar said in a statement after the vote. 'With this change, Alaskans will have the same consumer protections that apply to other loans, reducing the risk of debt traps and keeping more money in our communities.' An estimated 15,000 Alaskans take out a payday loan each year, according to research by the nonprofit Alaska Public Interest Research Group. Payday loans are short-term, high-cost loans, often for small amounts that are meant to be paid back on the borrower's next pay day. Interest rates can range from 194% to 521%, and advocates of the bill said it's a consumer protection measure that could help borrowers avoid becoming trapped in a cycle of debt and repayment of more payday loans. 'Instead of fixing a problem, this exception to the Small Loans Act has been more like giving a thirsty person a glass of salt water,' Eischeid said on the House floor ahead of the vote. 'It doesn't help in the long term.' Eischeid pointed to the Military Lending Act, which already established a cap at 36% total annual percentage rate for loans to military service personnel. 'Veterans, on the other hand, do not have similar protections and are targeted by payday lenders and are vulnerable to these excessive fees and interests,' Eischeid said. 'We should provide safeguards in the marketplace, so Alaskans aren't the victims. It's time to remove the loophole to payday loans and protect Alaskan families from predatory lending practices.' Rep. Jamie Allard, R-Eagle River, opposed the bill. 'This is government overreach. Individuals should be able to take loans as they wish, at whatever percentage rate. And frankly, there's credit cards that have a higher interest rate than what we're doing right now, today, and I don't see that in this bill,' she said. High interest loans can present dilemmas regarding governance and oversight. One day after the Legislature passed the bill, the Anchorage Daily News and ProPublica published an investigation spotlighting a tribal lending business, Minto Money, based in the small community of Minto outside Fairbanks. The story details how online lending at high interest rates is highly lucrative, but highlights ethical concerns, community divisions and questions around who benefits. While the company does not lend to people in Alaska, the investigation found, there is an effort to attract other Alaska villages to the lending industry. 'Tribes in America are in demand as business partners because they can claim that, as sovereign entities, their operations are exempt from state interest rate caps,' the authors wrote. 'Critics of such lending partnerships have called them 'rent-a-tribe.'' Dunbar said the legislation was developed before he became aware of the lender. He responded to the story's findings in an email on Friday. 'I applaud the investigative coverage of the ADN/ProPublica on a particular payday lender who appears to have engaged in the kind of practices that highlight why reform was necessary. Without clear limits, too many Alaskans have faced a lack of safe borrowing options and have often been left with only predatory choices.' He said it's notable that every registered payday lending company that operates in Alaska is based outside of the state, and the vast majority of these transactions are done online. The bill includes a provision to prevent companies from evading state interest-rate caps. 'I am glad that the bill included an anti-evasion clause and provisions to limit 'rent-a-bank' practices,' Dunbar said. Once transmitted to Dunleavy, he has 20 days excluding Sundays to sign the bill, veto it or allow it to become law without his signature. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Downtown St. Louis development plan falls short as Missouri lawmakers adjourn
ST. LOUIS – A proposal that sought to convert empty office buildings in downtown St. Louis into residential and retail spaces fell short of the governor's desk as Missouri lawmakers adjourned for the year Thursday. Senate Bill 35, sponsored by State Rep. Steven Roberts (D-St. Louis), aimed to create the the 'Revitalizing Missouri Downtowns and Main Streets Act.' Extreme hail, winds, more possible Thursday and Friday The legislation proposed authorizing up to $50 million per year in tax credits to support the renovation and rehabilitation of blighted properties, specifically along Main Streets and in the heart of downtowns across the state. In an April interview with Nexstar Missouri Capitol Bureau reporter Mark Zinn, Roberts pointed to two longtime vacant downtown St. Louis buildings – the Railway Exchange Building and former AT&T skyscraper – as prime candidates for redevelopment under such tax credits. Visions included mixed-use spaces with residential units, ground-level retail and office space. The bill drew some bipartisan support and cleared the Senate before reaching a House Economic Development Committee hearing, but ultimately failed to gain enough momentum before the state's legislative session ended. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Bill addresses decision-making for Ohioans with developmental disabilities
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – A bill in the Ohio Statehouse seeks to establish a presumption that all adults with developmental disabilities are capable of making their own decisions unless otherwise determined by a court. Senate Bill 35, sponsored by Sens. Michele Reynolds (R-Franklin County) and Jerry Cirino (R-Kirtland), was introduced in January. Along with declaring that adults with developmental disabilities should be presumed capable of managing their affairs, the bill would legally establish a 'less restrictive' alternative to guardianship, called 'supported decision making' (SDM), according to Reynolds. SDM allows individuals with developmental disabilities to retain their legal decision making authority while receiving support from chosen advisers who can help them understand, make and communicate their decisions. The bill would allow the advisors to be formally chosen through a written plan, or chosen informally. In a guardianship, a family member or other entity is in charge of an individual's affairs and ultimately makes decisions for them, when a court finds that person is incapable of making their own decisions due to a mental disability, according to the nonprofit Disability Rights Ohio. 'This legislation addresses a significant need in our current system,' Reynolds said at the bill's first hearing in February. 'Many adults with developmental disabilities find that full guardianship is more restrictive than necessary, while complete independence may not provide adequate support.' Under the bill, entering into a SDM plan could not be used as grounds for a court to find that an adult is incapable of managing their own affairs. Adults with developmental disabilities who use a SDM plan would be allowed to act independently of their advisors and end the plan at any time. The bill additionally clarifies that adults with developmental disabilities could not be forced into a SDM plan. Reynolds said that the approach recognizes that 'disability exists on a spectrum' and that many adults with developmental disabilities are capable of making their own decisions. Twenty-three states have enacted similar legislation, according to the lawmakers. 'Supported decision making protects adults with developmental disabilities from exploitation because they maintain control over their own lives and decisions,' Cirino said. If the bill were to pass, the Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities would develop example SDM plans and educational materials. The bill had its second hearing earlier this month, where 13 entities testified in support of the legislation, including the Down Syndrome Association of Central Ohio and the Ohio Association of County Boards of Developmental Disabilities (OACB). 'Unfortunately, in many instances, guardianship represents an all-or-nothing decision for the courts to make when they are asked to balance a person's health and safety with their ability to make decisions about their own future,' said Jake Dowling, a legislative affairs manager with OACB. 'Supported decision making offers a middle path that preserves both.' Greg Carter, the parent and legal guardian of an adult with developmental disabilities, told NBC4 he questions how the legislation would affect those currently under a guardianship arrangement. 'A parent who has been a part of their child's life all along should not have to jump through any hoops to continue in the role of decision maker for their loved one simply because the calendar turns a page,' Carter said. 'I question the motivation and need for a [policy] such as this.' While a hearing for opponent testimony has not yet been held for the legislation, some critics of the concept have come out against a recently introduced budget bill including language that would codify SDM in Ohio law. Caroline Lahrmann, an Ohio mother, testified against the budget bill (HB 96) saying those with developmental disabilities can already have friends and family assist them with decision making without new legislation. Harris Capps, a parent and legal guardian, echoed the same sentiment, calling sections of the bill addressing SDM 'unnecessary' and 'redundant.' 'SDM as policy could result in a degradation of Ohio's guardianship system while providing more opportunities for frivolous lawsuits,' Capps said. Current Ohio law requires those with developmental disabilities to be able to manage their financial affairs if they are able, participate in decisions that affect their lives, and select a parent or advocate to act on their behalf. Cirino introduced a similar bill in the last General Assembly that did not pass before the end of the legislative session. SB 35 was assigned to the Senate Judiciary Committee and currently has one Republican cosponsor. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Pennsylvania Senate passes bills aimed at eliminating car emissions testing
(WTAJ)– The state Senate on Monday approved two bills sponsored by Senator Wayne Langerholc aimed at reforming Pennsylvania's vehicle emissions testing program. Senate Bill 35 would remove Blair, Cambria, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Lycoming, Mercer and Westmoreland counties from the annual emissions testing program. Senate Bill 149 would exempt all vehicles within the five most recent model years from the tests as well, but statewide. 'Quick and convenient' Pa. bill could change beer, wine delivery services In an interview with WTAJ News on Thursday Langerholc said these bills are common sense and would help save Pennsylvanians money. 'Emissions testing is the most outdated, unnecessary, and nonsensical way to address this,' Langerholc said. 'It has no impact. If you look at the cars that are tested the pass rates are ridiculously high. I think this is completely unneeded.' Both bills will now head to the state house of representatives for approval. Langerholc said that he will continue to lobby house lawmakers to consider the bills and is optimistic that they will pass. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
