Passed:
Issue 2 would allow the state to issue $400 million in bonds to pay for conservation and preservation of natural areas and redevelopment of public and private land. It allows for a continuation of the existing Clean Ohio program with new funding.
Passed:
Issue 3 is designed to ensure that property owners retain rights to groundwater beneath their land, or rights to use water if the property is along a lake or river.
Passed: Issue 5--limitations on payday lending practices
The crux of the debate over Issue 5 surrounds the amount payday lenders are allowed to charge for short-term loans.
If a majority votes "no," payday lenders could charge a 391 percent annualized interest rate ($15 per $100 on a two-week loan). If a majority votes "yes," payday lenders would be limited under HB 545 to a 28 percent interest-rate limit. The bill also would limit borrowers to four loans per year, and ban loan terms shorter than 31 days.
Under a "yes" vote, payday lenders also may try to operate under Ohio's current Small Loan Act, which allows a 28 percent rate plus a $15 origination fee. However, experts argue that the current payday lending model likely would not be a viable option under that rate.
"Independent research has shown that without the option of payday lending, consumers bounced more checks, filed for more bankruptcies, did not pay bills and even choose dangerous options such as forgoing prescription medications," said D. Lynn DeVault, president of the Community Financial Services Association of America, a payday advocacy group.
Opponents say payday loans do more harm than good.
"We did not ban small consumer loans," said House Speaker Jon Husted, R-Kettering. "Rather we capped the interest rate at a level that created a reasonable expectation that the borrower could pay it back."
He then added, "...because consumers are too stupid to make smart decisions for themselves. And Ohio agrees." OK, he didn't say that. But how else can I interpret that?
