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Return of title loans appears squelched
Rep. Frank Farkas' block of the bill and Rep. Kim Berfield's vote for it could become an issue in their Senate contest.
By STEVE BOUSQUET
Published April 20, 2006
TALLAHASSEE - A key House committee chairman from St. Petersburg sounded the death knell Wednesday for a bill that would allow high-interest car title loans that Florida banned six years ago.
"As far as I'm concerned, we're not hearing it," said Republican Rep. Frank Farkas, chairman of the House Commerce Council, a focal point for business-related legislation. Farkas' council is scheduled to meet for the last time today.
"I have big concerns about the bill," said Farkas, a candidate for the state Senate. His Republican primary opponent, Rep. Kim Berfield, R-Clearwater, cast the deciding vote in favor of the bill in a House committee Monday, over the opposition of legal aid and consumer advocates.
The two lawmakers' opposite stands raises the possibility that the title loan legislation could be an issue in the primary for the District 16 Senate seat.
If a chairman refuses to hear a bill or allow it to be withdrawn from a committee, it's usually viewed as having failed. Supporters could try to attach it to a related bill as an amendment, but Farkas could use his influence to block such a maneuver.
Farkas recalled that, in 2000, Gov. Jeb Bush signed a law to "tone down" 22 percent-a-month interest rates on the short-term loans, the equivalent of 264 percent a year. The law capped interest rates at 30 percent annually. Title lenders say that is less than the rates charged by some pawn shops.
Berfield said earlier she voted for the bill because supporters had agreed to changes that offered greater consumer protections, such as a $3,000 limit on loans and a credit counseling program.
The title loan bill (HB 1109) is sponsored by Rep. Chris Smith of Fort Lauderdale, the House Democratic leader, who conceded that Farkas' opposition dooms his bill. The Senate version is stalled as well, with slightly more than two weeks left in the session.
[Last modified April 20, 2006, 01:48:15]
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