Legislation capping pawnbroker interest rates may come up when lawmakers return to Springfield in early January.
Senator Jacqueline Collins of Chicago says pawn shops are charging customers excessive interest rates. She’s proposing a cap of 36 percent, just like payday lenders must abide by. She says if this doesn’t happen, there will be consequences.
First, the people who were once vulnerable to payday lenders will become targets of pawnbrokers. The second thing is it would open the floodgates for other predatory lenders who would come to the legislature asking for a carve-out”
Collins would like to see her bill passed during the next month’s lame-duck legislative session.
Opponents in the industry say the cap would put them out of business.
