This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The Senate gave final passage Wednesday to tighter regulations for the high-interest payday-loan industry.
Senators voted 22-1 to pass HB292, and sent it to Gov. Gary Herbert for his possible signature.
Rep. Brad Daw, R-Orem, earlier said his bill represents compromises worked out with payday lenders to move some reforms forward after a more sweeping bill was defeated last year and had faced significant opposition this year.
The bill's provisions now include:
• For first-time borrowers, payday lenders must check their ability to repay through commercial credit databases that include "sub-prime" loans such as payday lending.
• All lenders must report their loans to that database, which would help show if a borrower already has one or more payday loans outstanding.
• Before payday lenders sue borrowers for nonpayment, they must offer in writing an interest-free loan extension of 60 to 90 days.
• Payday lenders must report how many lawsuits they file annually against borrowers for nonpayment. They also must report how many payments were made by people sued before the lawsuits were filed.
The industry has asserted that the lion's share of such lawsuits are against people who made no payments at all, and Daw said the reporting would show whether that is true.
Daw is making those moves after The Salt Lake Tribune reported in December that payday lenders sued 7,927 Utahns last year, roughly the population of Park City. State reports also said nearly 46,000 Utahns last year could not pay off loans in the 10 weeks they can be extended.