Home  About  In the News  Publications  Blog  Join  Donate  > Inside Yale  Yale News Students discuss urban development with Professor Terry Nicholas Clark at the University of Chicago's Launch Event Announcements National Expo: July 11th Hyde Park Summit: August 14-17 Essay Winners Announced in The Nation On Campus Iowa Chapter Holds Forum Zach Hindin in the GW Hatchet Coverage of the Johns Hopkins Chapter Launch > More "Do what you feel in your heart to be right -- for you'll be criticized anyway." — Eleanor Roosevelt    Lazarus Testifies Before DC City Council > Roosevelt Home > Yale > Press Room > Lazarus Testifies Before DC City Council July 2007 -- Roosevelt Fellow and Berkeley sophomore Ben Lazarus was invited to testify before the Washington, DC City Council during their hearing about the practice of predatory payday lending. Lazarus testified based on his research with the Center on Economic Policy. After the hearing, the Council voted to impose strict interest caps on payday loans, in line with Lazarus' recommendations. During the Fall of 2006, the Center on Economic Policy worked to examine the effectiveness of Connecticut's lending laws in protecting consumers from abusive practices. By comparing the successes and failures of different states' approaches, the center developed a set of policy recommendations for all states and municipalities to adopt. Predatory payday lending is the practice of offering short-term, high interest and fee loans to desperate consumers in need of fast cash. While many states have attempted to regulate the industry and protect consumers, lenders in most areas have managed to exploit legal loopholes and continue to target needy individuals. A summary of their research was published in the national Roosevelt publication, 25 Ideas for Working Families in America, which was distributed to every member of Congress and thousands of state and local lawmakers around the nation. Related Materials and Links: Full Policy Report on Predatory Payday Lending: Jaunary 2007 Text of Lazarus' Testimony: June 2007 Published 25 Ideas Piece: July 2007 Coverage of Testimony at Campus Progress: July 2007   The Roosevelt Institution is a nonpartisan, nonprofit national think tank devoted to bringing students' policy ideas to the policy process. The opinions expressed on this site are exclusively those of its members. DC Headquarters: Roosevelt Institution / 2100 M St NW Suite 610 / Washington, DC 20037 || (202) 833-1359