Mark Takano: “With Veterans Day 1 week from today, I rise to call attention to an issue affecting military families across the…”

“With Veterans Day 1 week from today, I rise to call attention to an issue affecting military families across the country. In 2006, Congress enacted the Military Lending Act to protect servicemembers from predatory lenders, but those same protections are not in place for veterans and their families. As a result, veterans often fall victim to payday lenders who offer unaffordable loans, forcing them even deeper into debt. In 2013, California payday lenders generated three-quarters of their revenue from borrowers who took out seven or more loans. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau should use its authority to crack down on the worst abuses in the payday loan market. Veterans and their families have made tremendous sacrifices to keep us safe. The least we can do is protect them from unethical lenders who deliberately trap them in a cycle of debt. ____________________”