Barry wants council to back state payday lending bill

Mayoral candidate Megan Barry wants the Metro Council to go on record supporting state legislation that targets the payday loan industry.

Barry, an at-large Metro councilwoman and one of seven mayoral contenders, has filed a non-binding resolution in support of House Bill 317/Senate Bill 496, sponsored by Democratic lawmakers Rep. Darren Jernigan of Nashville and Sen. Sara Kyle of Memphis.

Their bill, opposed by the payday loan industry, would prohibit a short-term lender in Tennessee from assessing an interest rate for any short-term lending transaction that exceeds 28 percent for per annum.

"In other states, like Colorado where the legislature has put in more safeguards, payday lenders are able to operate and working families still have access to emergency lines of credit but with lower interest rates and fees," Barry said in a statement. "That should be our focus, balancing the need for access to short-term loans while ensuring that people who use those services aren't trapped into a cycle of debt and poverty."

The council will take up Barry's resolution on Tuesday.

The state legislation at issue is a long-shot to pass the Tennessee General Assembly. It has also drawn fierce resistance from payday loan companies. A spokesman for Nashville-based Advance Financial told the Nashville Scene last week that the bill "would put the entire industry out of business."