To amend sections 1315.39, 1315.40, 1315.41, and 1343.01 of the Revised Code to modify the provisions for making a loan under the Check-Cashing Business Loan law.

Section 1. That sections 1315.39, 1315.40, 1315.41, and 1343.01 of the Revised Code be amended to read as follows:

Sec. 1315.39.  (A) A check-cashing business licensed under sections 1315.35 to 1315.44 of the Revised Code may engage in the business of making loans provided that each loan meets all of the following conditions:

(1)(A) The total amount of the loan does not exceed eight hundred dollars.

(2)(B) The duration of the loan does not exceed six months.

(3)(C) The interest on the loan is calculated in compliance with, and does not exceed the amount permitted by, division (B) of this section 2905.22 of the Revised Code and is calculated to include any loan origination fee and all other fees and charges contracted for under the loan contract.

(4)(D) The loan is made pursuant to a written loan contract that sets forth the terms and conditions of the loan, and discloses in a clear and concise manner all of the following:

(a)(1) The total amount of fees and charges the borrower will be required to pay in connection with the loan pursuant to the loan contract;

(b)(2) The rate of interest contracted for under the loan contract, calculated both as an annual percentage rate based solely on the principal of the loan and as an annual percentage rate based on the sum of the principal of the loan and the loan origination fee, check collection charge, and all other fees or charges contracted for under the loan contract;

(c)(3) The total amount of each payment, when each payment is due, and the total number of payments that the borrower will be required to make under the loan contract;

(d)(4) A statement, printed in boldface type of the minimum size of ten points, as follows: "WARNING: The rate of interest charged on this loan is higher than the average rate of interest charged by financial institutions on substantially similar loans."

(5)(E) The loan is not being made to a borrower for purposes of retiring an existing loan between the check-cashing business and that borrower, which existing loan was made pursuant to sections 1315.35 to 1315.44 of the Revised Code.

(B) A check-cashing business may contract for and receive interest at a rate of five per cent per month or fraction of a month on the unpaid principal of a loan made under sections 1315.35 to 1315.44 of the Revised Code. Any unearned interest shall not be deducted from the proceeds of the loan or paid in advance, and interest shall be computed on the unpaid balance and shall not be compounded. If, after the first month of the loan contract, the loan is paid in full before the final date on which payment is due on the loan pursuant to the loan contract, the licensee shall refund or credit the borrower with the amount of the unearned interest for the unexpired period of the loan contract that follows the date of the borrower's payment in full.

Sec. 1315.40.  In addition to the interest authorized to be contracted for and received pursuant to section 1315.39 of the Revised Code, a check-cashing business licensed pursuant to sections 1315.35 to 1315.44 of the Revised Code may charge, collect, and receive the following fees and charges in connection with a loan made under sections 1315.35 to 1315.44 of the Revised Code:

(A) Loan origination fees not exceeding an amount equal to five dollars per fifty dollars up to five hundred dollars of the amount of the loan and three dollars and seventy-five cents per fifty dollars of the amount of the loan between five hundred one and eight hundred dollars;

(B) Check One check collection charges charge per loan not exceeding an amount equal to twenty dollars plus any amount passed on from other financial institutions for each check, negotiable order of withdrawal, share draft, or other negotiable instrument returned or dishonored for any reason, provided that the terms and conditions upon which check collection charges will be charged to the borrower are set forth in the written loan contract described in division (A)(4)(D) of section 1315.39 of the Revised Code;

(C)(B) Damages, costs, and disbursements to which the check-cashing business may become entitled to by law in connection with any civil action to collect a loan after default.

Sec. 1315.41.  No check-cashing business licensed pursuant to sections 1315.35 to 1315.44 of the Revised Code shall do any of the following:

(A) Violate section 1315.36 of the Revised Code;

(B) Make a loan that does not comply with division (A) of section 1315.39 of the Revised Code;

(C) Charge, collect, or receive, directly or indirectly, any additional fees or charges in connection with a loan, other than fees and charges permitted by sections 1315.39 and 1315.40 of the Revised Code and costs or disbursements to which the check-cashing business may become entitled to by law in connection with any civil action to collect a loan after default;

(D) Collect treble damages pursuant to division (A)(1)(b)(ii) of section 2307.61 of the Revised Code in connection with any civil action to collect a loan after a default due to a check, negotiable order of withdrawal, share draft, or other negotiable instrument that was returned or dishonored for insufficient funds;

(E) Make a loan to a borrower if there exists an outstanding loan between the check-cashing business and that borrower and if the outstanding loan was made pursuant to sections 1315.35 to 1315.43 of the Revised Code;

(F) Accept a check or other method of access to a deposit account maintained by the borrower, or the title of a vehicle as security for the obligation.

Sec. 1343.01.  (A) The parties to a bond, bill, promissory note, or other instrument of writing for the forbearance or payment of money at any future time, may stipulate therein for the payment of interest upon the amount thereof at any rate not exceeding eight per cent per annum payable annually, except as authorized in division (B) of this section.

(B) Any party may agree to pay a rate of interest in excess of the maximum rate provided in division (A) of this section when:

(1) The original amount of the principal indebtedness stipulated in the bond, bill, promissory note, or other instrument of writing exceeds one hundred thousand dollars;

(2) The payment is to a broker or dealer registered under the "Securities Exchange Act of 1934," 48 Stat. 881, 15 U.S.C. 78A, as amended, for carrying a debit balance in an account for a customer if such debit balance is payable on demand and secured by stocks, bonds or other securities;

(3) The instrument evidences a loan secured by a mortgage or deed of trust on real estate where the loan has been approved, insured, guaranteed, purchased, or for which an offer or commitment to insure, guarantee, or purchase has been received, in whole or in part, by the federal government or any agency or instrumentality thereof, the federal national mortgage association, the federal home loan mortgage corporation, or the farmers home administration, all of which is authorized pursuant to the "National Housing Act," 12. U.S.C. 1701; the "Serviceman's Readjustment Act," 38 U.S.C. 1801; the "Federal Home Loan Bank Act," 12 U.S.C. 1421; and the "Rural Housing Act," 42 U.S.C. 1471, amendments thereto, reenactments thereof, enactments parallel thereto, or in substitution therefor, or regulations issued thereunder; or by the state or any agency or instrumentality thereof authorized pursuant to Chapter 122. of the Revised Code, or rules issued thereunder.

(4) The instrument evidences a loan secured by a mortgage, deed of trust, or land installment contract on real estate which does not otherwise qualify for exemption from the provisions of this section, except that such rate of interest shall not exceed eight per cent in excess of the discount rate on ninety-day commercial paper in effect at the federal reserve bank in the fourth federal reserve district at the time the mortgage, deed of trust, or land installment contract is executed.

(5) The instrument is payable on demand or in one installment and is not secured by household furnishings or other goods used for personal, family, or household purposes, or the instrument is payable in any number of installments and is a written loan contract made under sections 1315.35 to 1315.44 of the Revised Code.

(6)(a) The loan is a business loan to a business association or partnership, a person owning and operating a business as a sole proprietor; any persons owning and operating a business as joint venturers, joint tenants, or tenants in common; any limited partnership; or any trustee owning or operating a business or whose beneficiaries own or operate a business, except that:

(i) Any loan which is secured by an assignment of an individual obligor's salary, wages, commissions, or other compensation for services or by his the individual obligor's household furniture or other goods used for his the individual obligor's personal, family, or household purposes shall be deemed not a loan within the meaning of division (B)(6) of this section;

(ii) Any loan which otherwise qualifies as a business loan within the meaning of division (B)(6) of this section shall not be deemed disqualified because of the inclusion, with other security consisting of business assets of any such obligor, of real estate occupied by an individual obligor solely as his the individual obligor's residence.

(b) As used in division (B)(6)(a) of this section, "business" means a commercial, agricultural, or industrial enterprise which is carried on for the purpose of investment or profit. "Business" does not mean the ownership or maintenance of real estate occupied by an individual obligor solely as his the individual obligor's residence.

Section 2. That existing sections 1315.39, 1315.40, 1315.41, and 1343.01 of the Revised Code are hereby repealed.