Idaho lawmakers are considering two bills that could further regulate payday loans in the state. While there are 239 licensed payday lenders in the state, thousands of others operate online without being licensed in the state. The new bills could change that.
Each state has different regulations regarding payday loans. Some states have banned them outright, while others have more lenient laws. The strategy of some online payday lenders is to operate in a state with more lenient laws. Then when someone in another state applies for a payday loan online, they use their own state’s lenient laws when processing the loan.
Idaho lawmakers are taking up the bills that could end this practice in Idaho. The bill would first put a cease and desist order on all payday lenders, store front or online, not licensed by the state. Secondly, it would give the the state the right to declare loans from unlicensed lenders as invalid. Thus borrowers would not be required to pay back the loan.
The bill would also require lenders to offer credit and debt counseling services to borrowers, as well as offer an optional payment plan for borrowers who cannot repay the loan. Essentially the bill would require lenders to license with the state or stop lending online to residents of Idaho.
Check City offers payday loans online, including in Idaho, where we are licensed to do so. We will have to wait and see what happens in the Idaho legislature with this issue. It could be that anyone who wants to offer payday loans in Idaho may soon have to be licensed to do so.
