Pray or prey? How Amscot used ministers to lobby for its payday loan bill
Friday, April 6, 2018
April 6, 2018 -
When state lawmakers voted on a payday loan bill this year, they heard from a group not normally associated with the financial industry: men of the cloth.
Pastors from churches around the state spoke in favor of payday loans, and they weren't alone. A leader of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference — the organization founded Dr. Martin Luther King — supported it. Even the granddaughter of a celebrated Florida civil rights leader was an advocate. The ministers managed the Tallahassee trek by flying on private jets chartered by Florida's largest payday loan company, Amscot. They spread the payday gospel among black Democratic lawmakers, who Amscot's CEO considered critical to the bill's success. Amscot had the support of the vast majority of lawmakers, but it paid special focus to black Democrats, whose constituents could be most impacted by the bill. Click here to read the full article.
Categories: Business