I think a great deal of this debate has been driven by drama, even before Sheridan's sordid affair was exposed. Primarily, we've all read about payday lenders charging a dramatic 300% APR on a loan. Who in their right mind would take out these loans at 300%? Behind the theatrical wrangling of facts, there is a sobering and less sensational story: for a growing number of people, a small $200 loan makes the difference between making ends meet and going under.

Steve, you have to be kidding me. You run Sheridan down for a week and now ask him for his help. You run the payday loan sytem down then except them with conditions. Make up your mind already. Surely you could have found something more interesting to blog about today.

Money is like Time; If you cannot manage it, it does not matter how much you have.
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Adults once again needing the government to babysit them. Jeez........

From what I understand, with the legislation they are proposing, instead of capping the interest rates, they are going to police your actions as a citizen, ie you can't use your title, you can't borrow more than $600, you can't have more than one loan, you have to wait 15 minutes after hearing the full terms before accepting. I am not for legislating this because people will do as they please, whether it is from a licensed business or from a loan shark and either way, they are willing participants in the transactions. But capping interest rates (legislating the businesses with "reasonable business practices") seems a better solution than legislation the actions of citizens.

I noticed when I picked up a prescription at the downtown pharmacy, the credit union in the same building offers payday loans. Are they running the same scam as the others? I've never seen that before.Just asking.

It's possible that a silver lining of Sheridan's missteps is that the public scrutiny gets us a better bill than we otherwise would have. Steve, you're right that the long-term effects of this legislation are much more meaningful than whatever happens to Sheridan, which is mainly an issue for the voters in his next election.

Nobody "needs" a payday loan. Nobody. What is it that people need to buy, that they can't wait two weeks until their next paycheck? Food? Rental assistance? There are many services in this city to help people that are truely desparate.

The loans have no redeaming qualitites. Payday loans do not help desparation, they hurt. Just because they are legal, does not make them right.

NO, people did not get along without payday lenders. They were called loan sharks run by the mob, that is where payday lenders developed from. If you didn't pay them back, they injured you or your family. I do agree these places charge outrageous interest, but they do help out a few that handle them in the right way. If your car breaks down, kids need medicine, need groceries, whatever, they can help with a small loan and then you pay it right back. If you keep rolling it over, that is when it gets to be a problem. I have used them before, but would not recommend them. You are better off getting a title loan. JMO

The payday lending issue is a controversial one in the state. A number of our politicians recognize that the service does provide valuable short-term credit to many consumers, especially low-income borrowers who can't find loans in other, more traditional institutions. Our representatives should not overlook those who are benefited by short-term payday loans, especially since they have probably never needed one of these loans themselves. Government should not interfere with the personal finances of hard-working citizens in the state.

There would be plenty of demand for Crack too, if it were legal. That doesn't make it a good thing.

There certainly seems to be a demand for these cash stores, or there wouldn't be so many of them. Where would the demand go if the cash stores weren't around? About the only thing I'd recommend would be requiring full and clear disclosure of the terms of the loan.
I few weeks ago I saw a new iPhone app called Wonga that lets you get a loan for a mere 3000% interest rate. They say it's reasonable.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/money/article...

We need to keep up the pressure to make Sheridan either behave responsibly, or get out of office. Here is the URL to his Assembly web page contact form http://www.legis.state.wi.us/assembly/as...
or e-mail him at rep.sheridan@legis.state.wi.us or call his office at (608) 266-7503, or call toll-free (in Wisconsin) 1-888-947-0044.

Here is a link to his district map: http://www.legis.state.wi.us/assembly/as...
so you can see if he is misrepresenting you directly, or just embarrassing you as a bad example for Wisconsin politics.

Something needs to be done. They're nothing but loan sharks! Does anyone know what the interest is on one of these loans? I know it's high because my niece patronizes them but I don't know how much it is.