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New law regulates payday loans Under legislation signed
into law June 8, consumers who borrow money from payday loan lenders
will be better protected from unscrupulous business practices.
House Bill 1100 sets tougher standards and regulations for the
payday loan industry.
Payday loan facilities have a purpose and a place, and there
appears to be a market and a need for the loans. However, there had
been very little oversight, regulation or control of this industry.
Provisions of the legislation include:
- Loan limits of $1,000 or 25 percent of the borrowers’ monthly
income, whichever is less.
- A cap on the high end of the fee -- cannot charge more than
$15.50 per $100 loan.
- A one-day grace period for the borrower to back out of a loan
agreement without penalty.
- No loan rollovers by the lender, which increase the amount of
debt the borrower owes.
Educate student athletes about dangers of steroid abuse
A new law will teach student athletes about the dangers of
steroid abuse.
Signed June 8,
Senate Bill 64 requires school districts to teach junior high
and high school students participating in athletic programs about
the dangers of using anabolic steroids. School districts already
teach students in grades seven through 12 about steroid abuse. This
new law will require additional instruction for student athletes,
especially by their coaches.
Professional sports figures are role models for many young
people, and unfortunately many of the big star athletes have been
implicated in steroid use. We must be sure that student athletes
understand that these kinds of shortcuts to athletic success are
also very dangerous.
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Available in many forms -- pills, gels, and injectable solutions
-- anabolic steroids mimic the effects of testosterone and build
strength by entering a muscle cell and switch on the genes that
manufacture muscle proteins.
Supported by the State Board of Education, Senate Bill 64 has an
effective date of Jan. 1, 2006.
New law tightens child safety regulations
A new law will tighten the regulation of children’s products and
toys.
An initiative of the Keep Kids Safe Coalition,
Senate Bill 526 sets higher safety standards and imposes a fine
for companies that knowingly sell unsafe products designed or
intended for children younger than 9 years old. The standards will
be enforced by the Illinois attorney general.
Senate Bill 526 was signed into law June 8.
The new law states that a children’s product is deemed to be
unsafe if it does not conform to all applicable state and
federal laws and regulations set forth regarding children’s products
and if an agency of the federal government or the product’s
manufacturer, wholesaler, distributor or importer has issued a
warning.
Senate Bill 526 details the steps that the Department of Public
Health, manufacturers, importers, wholesalers, distributors and
retailers must take when a recall or warning for a children’s
product is issued -- including contacting customers and removing the
product from their shelves.
Senate Bill 526 also imposes a $500 penalty upon any commercial
dealer, importer, distributor, wholesaler or retailer who violates
the act by failing to exercise reasonable care. These moneys will be
deposited into the attorney general’s Court Ordered and Voluntary
Compliance Payment Projects Fund.
[From
Sen. Bill Brady]
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