April State Policy Victories
Over the past month, advocates were hard at work in Maryland and Michigan passing legislation to protect consumers and increase access to the EITC. Here's a look at some recent victories.
Maryland
Through the hard work of the Maryland CASH Campaign and the Maryland Consumer Rights Coalition, Maryland is on its way to a number of victories for consumers. Earlier this week, the General Assembly passed legislation that closes a loophole that allows payday lenders to circumvent Maryland law limiting excessive loan rates. State law sets a 33 percent cap on the annual interest rate on loans up to $6,000. However, online lenders use third-party brokers that charge their own fees. This has led to an average cost on a short-term loans of more than 600%. The new law would cap the interest and fees combined to 33%.
Maryland is also on its way to a victory over Refund Anticipation Loans (RALs). SB 762 will not eliminate the RALs but would require clear disclosures to consumers about their true costs.
Michigan
In March, the Earned Income Tax Credit Notification Act, a bill that requires employers to notify their employees of the EITC, passed the Michigan House. Employers would be required to provide employees with information regarding the EITC by January 31 of each year. The information would be required to include general eligibility requirements and instructions for claiming the credit.
Several organizations in the Michigan Statewide EITC Coalition testified in favor of or otherwise indicated support of the bill, including Community Economic Development Association of Michigan and Michigan League for Human Services. While the state of California requires employers to notify every employee about the EITC every yearat the same time W-2 forms are distributed, many states do not require employers to notify their employees that they may qualify for the federal EITC.,
If you are working on relevant state campaigns, and would like to share your story, please contact Lucy Mullany at NCTC.
