Pew researchers have found that most borrowers who take out payday loans use them to cover ordinary living expenses, not unexpected emergencies -- a finding that contradicts industry advertising that emphasizes payday loans as short-term options to cover financial emergencies. more

Before we get to our list of facts, I want to tell you about a dark and dingy room in the basement of the Institute for Social Research building at the University of Michigan

The report, "Payday Lending in America: Who Borrows, Where They Borrow, and Why," is based on an in-depth survey and focus groups with hundreds of payday borrowers around the country, conducted by Pew's Safe Small-Dollar Loan Research Project. more

Many people think of payday loans as a way to cover an unexpected emergency – such as a car repair or medical expense – until your next paycheck comes in. But nearly seven in 10 people who use the short-term, high-fee loans rely on them for recurring, everyday expenses such as rent, food, utilities or car payments. more

Grim findings from a task force come amid further setbacks to the nation's economic health. Jeffrey Brown discusses eroding revenues, state budget cuts and steep pension obligations with former New York Lt. Gov. Richard Ravitch, the report's co-chair, and Susan Urahn of the Pew Center on the States.