COLUMBUS — Ruby Thomas ran into trouble paying her mortgage when she switched jobs and went a while without a paycheck.

The Euclid resident turned to payday lenders to catch up.

"I was desperate but it was the worst thing I could possibly have done," Thomas told state lawmakers Thursday, April 17.

She joined several people who testified at an Ohio House hearing on three payday lending bills — two propose caps on interest rates and a third, sponsored by state Rep. Ross McGregor, R-Springfield, calls for extended payment plans and financial education.

Currently payday loans often carry a 391 annual percentage rate under federal calculations. One bill calls for limiting that to 36 percent and the other bill at 25 percent.

State Rep. Chris Widener, R-Springfield and chairman of the committee discussing the bills, said the way the APR is calculated under federal law is confusing and bears no relevance to the loans, which typically carry a $15 charge for every $100.

Thomas lost her house, she said, and has nine payday loans. She urged lawmakers to cap interest rates.

"You have the power to keep other families who are trying to live paycheck to paycheck from falling into payday debt," Thomas said. "Once you're in, it's a nightmare."

Payday lenders testified that they also would lose if legislators capped interest rates and could not keep their doors open under such restrictions.

Gloria Hayter, co-owner of Cash Pal in East Liverpool, opposes interest rate limits.

"It will shut me down," she said. "We can't operate."

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