Media advisory: Professor can discuss KC hearing to fight predatory payday lending

LAWRENCE — The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is hosting a public hearing in Kansas City, Missouri, on June 2, the same day as the national day of action to end predatory lending. CFPB director Richard Cordray will speak at the hearing at the Kansas City Convention Center.

Terri Friedline, University of Kansas assistant professor of social welfare and director of financial inclusion in the Center on Assets, Education and Inclusion of KU’s School of Social Welfare, is available to speak with media about the event, financial inclusion, predatory lending, the consequences of financial exclusion, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the day of action and related topics.

The CFPB will have a public hearing and release its new payday lending rules as part of the event, which will also feature testimony from consumer groups, industry representatives and members of the public.

“Predatory lenders trap their customers in debt by charging exorbitant interest rates and encouraging repeat borrowing,” Friedline said. “This public hearing and the national day of action is important because consumers deserve better than a 500 percent interest rate. The CFPB’s oversight can help make sure that consumers have access to short-term loans that are safe and affordable and do not make a bad financial situation worse.”

Friedline is an expert in financial inclusion and has published research showing people are more likely to use payday lenders more often when these lenders are concentrated in their community. She is also leading a grant project to build an interactive map showing varying levels of financial opportunity across the country and how available services affect individuals’ and families’ financial well-being.