Utah too lax on payday lenders?

"I can tell you that with him in the back room and us out in the hall, we didn't have a chance," she said.

Allen, the former senator from Tooele, said, "Some of that happened, but I don't think he had as much power as she thinks."

Pignanelli, the lobbyist for the industry, says it didn't happen at all — and that he and others working with the industry made a point to try to keep Evans at a distance on any legislation affecting it because such criticism could arise.

Evans initially did not return phone calls seeking response. But when he visited the Morning News editorial board to attack Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson about use of taxpayer money on his trips, Evans was asked about his role in payday loan legislation. He became furious but denied any improper influence.

"Anytime I go after any liberal cause this comes up. . . . That's the only thing this segment of the political spectrum can utilize," he said. "If you detect some hostility, there is. . . . It's almost like a 'have you stopped beating your wife' setup. I mean, some of these accusations, I no longer respond to."

Evans also says the industry's Utah Consumer Lending Association — of which he is not a member — has asked him not to talk to the press about payday loans and to refer inquiries to Pignanelli. Evans declined to respond to questions about how he built his business and how much profit it makes now.

Proposals

Because of stiff opposition to caps on interest rates from the financial industry, Hilton says she and her allies do not plan to push that again anytime soon. But she says they may have several other bills at the next Legislature proposing other sorts of tighter regulations.

"I would like to see some financial penalty for violating state regulations," she said. "Now if they (lenders) break the law, one of two things happen: (1) Nothing; or (2), if it's bad enough, the state shuts them down. There is nothing in between."

She would also like to fix a problem with a law that gives borrowers 24 hours to cancel a loan without penalty. The problem is that current law does not require lenders to tell borrowers about that provision, and she thinks it should.

Hilton would also like to outlaw allowing wage garnishment by payday lenders. (Now it is allowed only if a borrower voluntarily agrees to it — and they may revoke that at any time. However, some lenders seek that permission before they approve loans.)

"We've heard a lot of garnishment horror stories," she said.