TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Julia Wilburn on Mar 18, 2025

A bill allowing interest rates to increase at payday lending places is now headed to Gov. Bill Lee's desk, reports News Channel 5. HB775/SB694 would allow for any amount of $100 or more to have an effective borrow rate of 36%. Sponsored by Rep. Dennis Powers, R-Jacksboro, and Sen. Majority Leader Jack Johnson, R-Franklin, the bill passed in the Senate along party lines, but in the House a few Republicans voted against the measure for a breakdown of 61-26-8. One Republican opponent, Rep. Mike Sparks, R-Smyrna, said he opposed the bill for raising interest rates on the working poor. House Majority Leader William Lamberth, R-Portland, said it was time to update state law: "We adjust [the rate] from time to time, to allow those companies to still be able to survive, even though they were taking very high risk loans for folks ... Those companies have to come to us, and prove to us there has to be an adjustment before we’re comfortable raising that limit."