Bill To Restrict Payday Lending In SC Advances

"Overall, this is a vast improvement — a huge improvement — over what the House did because it's looking at the real problem, which is a business model of lending more money to someone than they have the capacity to repay," said Sue Berkowitz, executive director of the low-income advocacy group South Carolina Appleseed Legal Justice Center.

But Fulmer said lenders don't do that. "The key point is that there's no lender that's going to knowingly provide somebody a loan that they think can't pay you back."

Fulmer said the bill's limits could mean people can't get the maximum $600 loan unless they make $60,000 a year.

"That doesn't help that consumer get their car fixed. That doesn't help the consumer deal with their immediate need," Fulmer said.

Fulmer doesn't mind the licensing and penalties. "We've always believed if there are providers of this product who are not strictly conforming to the state law, that, you know, they should be punished," Fulmer said.