Ohio voters step closer to voting on payday lending reforms

The proposed amendment calls for prohibiting short-term lenders from charging more than 28 percent interest and fees on loans

Consumer advocates are keeping the pressure on the payday lending industry by simultaneously pushing lawmakers to adopt reforms and going forward with a ballot effort.

The advocates won approval Monday for their petition language from Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine. Once they clear the Ohio Ballot Board, they’ll be allowed to start gathering the required 306,000 valid voter signatures to put a proposed constitutional amendment before the voters.

Related: Big money, political muscle on display in payday lending clash

The proposed amendment calls for prohibiting short-term lenders from charging more than 28 percent interest and fees on loans. Repayment schedules would be no more than 5 percent of the borrower’s gross monthly income.

Meanwhile, the Ohio House is expected to vote on House Bill 123, which calls for the most sweeping reforms to the payday lending industry in a decade. The vote cannot be scheduled until the Ohio House picks a new speaker, which could come as early as Tuesday.

Related: Fight over House speaker holding up bill votes

The bill, sponsored by state Rep. Kyle Koehler, R-Springfield, was introduced in March 2017 and languished until Republican Cliff Rosenberger abruptly announced his resignation in April after acknowledging that he hired a criminal defense attorney to deal with an FBI inquiry.

The Ohio Consumer Lenders Association has said that House Bill 123 is unworkable in its present form.

While Rosenberger has said all his actions as House speaker were lawful and ethical, sources familiar with the FBI probe say agents are looking at Rosenberger’s four-day trip to London that was sponsored by GOPAC Educational Fund but underwritten in part by payday lenders.

This newspaper also found Rosenberger also traveled to China and Normandy, France with a payday lending company executive.

Related: Payday lender made 3 international trips with ex-Ohio House speaker

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