Jan
18
Capital Punishment
In 2003, after two years of study, the Christian Life Commission released a report called Christians and Capital Punishment (pdf) (view summary pdf) that called for a moratorium on the death penalty in Texas. Since that time the CLC has advocated for many policies related to capital punishment including the addition of the life without parole sentencing option and the creation of an innocence commission to study what went wrong in the cases where individuals have been exonerated. In December, the Texas Campaign to Abolish the Death Penalty released its annual report of developments (pdf) related to the death penalty in Texas. Among the findings, the report shows that there were just eight new individuals sentenced to death in 2009, the lowest since the court reinstated the death penalty in 1976 and down from a high of 48 in 1999. The report shows that once again Texas accounted for half of all executions nationwide. Since 1982 this state has executed a total of 447 people and 11 Texans have been exonerated from death row. There are currently 322 men and 10 women on death row in Texas. The Reverend Carroll Pickett, who served as chaplain for death row for nearly 16 years and witnessed 95 executions, was at the press conference releasing the report. Rev. Pickett was the subject of the award winning 2008 documentary “At the Death House Door”. Anyone interested in this issue, whether for against capital punishment, should find a copy of this film.
View Christians and Capital Punishment (pdf)
View Summary of Christians and Capital Punishment (pdf)
View Death Penalty Developments in 2009 (pdf)
Payday Loans
The number of payday loans in Texas has exploded. However, many Texans don’t know what payday loans are let alone why they can be a problem for some people. Payday loans are small dollar loans with enormously high service fees that offer instant cash with no credit checking.
The following scenario is an example of how typical payday loans operate and how they can lead to trouble. Let’s say that a single mother has a car in need of repair. The bill is $300, but she only has $150 until her next pay check and she has no credit card or her credit card is maxed out. She writes a check to a payday lender for $361.07 ($300 principle loan, plus $1.07 interest, and a $60.00 service fee). The payday lender promises to hold the check for 2-3 weeks until she gets paid again. The mother now has two options. The next payday, she will either pay off her $361.07 debt in cash or she will allow the payday lender to cash the check. She cannot pay it off in installments; she must pay it in full. If she doesn’t have $361.07 in two weeks, the check will bounce incurring penalty fees from both the bank and the lender. To avoid the penalties, she rolls over the original loan and pays an additional $60.00 loan fee. If the loan was paid off after the second pay period, a $300 loan would generate $121.07 in profit.
Payday lenders mostly serve families with moderate- and low- incomes. In a recent survey, the majority of payday borrowers earn an income of $30,000 or less. One in ten payday borrowers use them monthly. 58% of people who use a payday loan roll over the loan at least once, while one in four payday borrowers roll them over multiple times. Most payday loans are used for recurring expenses of basic needs like rent, utilities, and food. Payday loans generate profit by creating a cycle of debt.
Attempts have been made in Texas to more tightly regulate payday lenders. The Texas Finance Code sets restrictions on fees and payment periods. Yet, many lenders operate as Consumer Service Organizations in an effort to avoid regulation. CSOs register with the Secretary of State but are not regulated by or required to obtain a license from the Office of Consumer Credit Commissioner. This business model sidesteps many state regulations on the books.
The Christian Life Commission views predatory lending in the same category as predatory gambling. Both prey on vulnerable populations for profit. The CLC will be researching legislation that may better regulate payday loans in order to decrease predatory lending in Texas. In addition, the CLC is working with coalition partners to promote alternative small dollar loan products – products that help families get out of debt rather than perpetuate a cycle of debt. Payday loans and other predatory practices will be discussed at the CLC Annual Conference, March 22-23. The conference will focus on ways to establish a healthy life of thrift in relation to the call of Christian stewardship.
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