ustxtxb_obs_1965_07_09_50_00012-00000_000.pdf

Connally Vetoes Bankers’ Interest Bill 1 Austin Governor John Connally’s veto of the bankers’ and savings and loan institutions’ higher interest rate bill was explained in a three-pige statement from him, a salient part of which said that “No evidence was presented . . . to justify these specific rates either on the basis of reasonableness or need.” Bankers had been urging the governor to sign the bill. The Committee Against Unreasonable Interest Rates in Dallas, Cong. Henry Gonzalez of San Antonio, and Bexar County’s Cmsr. Albert Pena were among those who urged that the bill be killed. Even some of the members who voted for the bill had second thoughts. Said the Dallas News, “As the session ended, Dallas legislators expressed concern privately over voter reaction. . . . They agreed the bank interest bill-. . . could cause the greatest `backlash’ from voters.” The bill’s distinctive characteristic was its applicability to middle class people, many of whom need loans that fall within the $100 to $5,000 range that the bill enclosed. Sponsors of the legislation said the bill legalized charges of 17.49% on loans up to $1,500 and about 14% on loans from $1,500 to $5,000. Connally said the effective rates would have been 13.6 to 16.2%. The governor gave other reasons for his veto. “In effect,” he said, the bill “provides an open-end authority for a lender to require whatever insurance he may desire. 12 The Texas Observer FUN TO READ! The IDLER is a lively, individualistic liberal monthly that entertains as it informs. Warm humor and cold facts mixed into a pleasant, personal and personable journalistic pot. Send $3.00 today for a year’s subscription. Money back if not satisfied. Discover THE IDLER and you will have made a new friend. THE IDLER 125 Fifth St., N.E. Washington 2, D. C. Please send me a one year’s subscription to THE IDLER. Enclosed is $3.00. Name Address Zip . . . The net result would be increased total cost of the loan to the borrower.” The governor said his greatest concern was a section that authorized “any other corporation subject to examination or supervision by the banking commissioner of Texas” to make loans. “As can be seen,” he said, “certain lenders not subject to adequate or effective regulation would be authorized to operate under the terms” of the bill. Connally said he is asking relevant state agencies to study consumer finance and come up with a consumer credit regulatory bill, presumably for consideration by the 1967 legislature. The veto left the seven out of nine legislators who voted for the bill in exposed positions politically, especially in light of the political turmoil that redistricting will be causing in the 1966 elections. ‘To follow better the meaning of the record votes on the bank bill as it was finally passed in the House, readers may refer to the June 11 Observer’s report on the matter, especially that part beginning on page three. The Jamison amendment, adopted with Rep. Cory’s support, excluded from the bill’s higher interest rates all real estate-secured loans, and was passed 112-28. The 28 members who voted against excluding real estate loans from the bill were Atwell, Blankenship, Brown, Cain, Crews, Dickson, Doke, Field, Fondren, Hallmark, Heatly, Johnson of Bell, Jones of Lubbock, Jones of Taylor, Jungmichel, Knapp, Longoria, McKissack, Moyer, Newman, Parsley, Slack, Solomon, Townsend, Traeger, Wayne, Wheeler, and Wright. The House rejected, 100-36, Rep. Hollowell’s amendment to limit bank and savings and loan institution loans to 10% interest. The 36 who voted with Hollowell for 10% were Alaniz, Atwood, Bass of Bowie, Bernal, Berry, Caldwell, Cherry, Cole, Duggan, Dungan, Eckhardt, Edwards, Floyd, Garrison Gates, Green, Grover, Haring, Harris, Haynes of Orange, Hightower, Hollowell, Isaacks, Johnson of Bexar, Kilpatrick, Kothmann, Lack, Lee, Markgraf, Miller of Newton, Montoya, Nugent of Kerr, Rich Subscriptions for $4 Subscriptions to the Observer can be bought by groups at a cost of $4 a year, provided ten or more subscrip tions are entered at one time. If you belong to a group that might be in terested in this, perhaps you will want to take the matter up with the others. SPLIT RAIL INN 217 South Lamar Austin Where Union Men Meet ardson, Roberts, Vale, and Whitfield. Smith was present, not voting; Price was in the chair; Cory, Lewis, McDonald of Rusk, and Stroud were absent; Cowles, Ligarde, Richards, Weldon, and Wieting were absent, excused. All other 101 members of the House voted against Hollowell’s amendment. Rep. Eckhardt proposed to strike the 14% interest rate in the bill for loans from $1,500 to $5,000, and this was defeated, 80-60. The 80 members who voted for the 14% interest rate on these loans by voting to kill Eckhardt’s amendment were Allen, Arledge, Armstrong, Atwell, Atwood, Birkner, Blaine, Blankenship, Bonilla, Brooks, Brown, Burgess, Cain, Canales, Cavness, Clayton, Connally, Cory, Cowden, Crain, Crews, Dickson, Doke, Edwards, Field; Finney, Fletcher, Foreman, Gibbens, Guffey, Haines of Brazos, Hallmark, Harding, Harrison, Heatly, Hefton, Hendryx, Holmes, Howard, Ivy, Johnson of Bell, Jones of Lubbock, Jones of Taylor, Jungmichel, Knapp, Kothmann, McClinton, McKissack, McLaughlin, Miller of Harris, Mobley, Moyer, Mutscher, Neugent of Galveston, Newman, Parsley, Pipkin, Price, Satterwhite, Schiller, Scoggins, Joe Shannon of Tarrant, Tommy Shannon of Tarrant, Sherman, Simpson, Slack, Solomon, Stroud, Thompson, Thurmond, Townsend, Traeger, Wade, Ward, Wayne, Whatley, Wheeler, Williamson, Woods, and Wright. The bankers’ bill was finally passed by the House of Representatives by a vote of 110-30. The 30 members who voted no were Alaniz, Bass of Bowie, Bernal, Berry, Caldwell, Cherry, Cory, Duggan, Eckhardt, Edwards, Finney, Floyd, Garrison, Green, Haring, Harris, Haynes of Orange, Hollowell, Isaacks, Kothmann, Lack, Lee, Lewis, Markgraf, Miller of Houston, Richardson, Roberts, Vale, Whitfield, and Wieting. Field, Ligarde, Pipkin, and Thompson were present, not voting; Gates and Wright were absent; Crews and Weldon were absent, excused. the other 110 members voted for the bill. The Senate had finally passed its version of the bankers’ bill with only six voting no Crump, Dies, Herring, Kazen, Moore, and Patman. Hall was absent; Kennard and Spears were “absentexcused”; the other 22 senators voted aye. On the question of accepting the House amendents and therefore having the bankers’ bill become law, the Senate held a record vote the last Friday of the session, and the amendments were accepted, 22-9. Voting aye were Aikin, Bates, Blanchard, Calhoun, Colson, Creighton, Dies, Hall, Hardeman, Harrington, Hazlewood, Hightower, Kennard, Krueger, Parkhouse, Ratliff, Reagan, Richter, Rogers, Snelson, Watson, and Word. Voting no were Cole, Crump, Herring, Kazen, Moore, Patman, Schwartz, Spears, and Strong.’ 211.004181.101111111111111.041=1.411111.100110 Observer Credited Credit for the veto Governor Connally gave the eighteen precent installment loan bills goes to . . . the Texas Observer, [which] gave more details on the viciousness of the bill than all 1 other papers in Texas. We know of no big daily which opposed the bill, but the Observer blasted the bill repeatedly. ! It is beyond the realm of reason, to I believe the bank lobbyists did not have the bill throughly checked with the governor months ago. High-priced lobbyists are very thorough in their work. Subscribers to the Observer should I be proud of . . . a great savings to thousands of Texans. The Midlothian Mirror ..=01.101111M1114111111141111111111110111111111114110001111111104111.,