Payday loan association registers first in-house lobbyist

A major payday loan association registered a former Hill staffer as its first in-house lobbyist last week, public records show.

Charles Halloran, a former chief of staff to former Rep. Tim Mahoney (D-Fla.), is now the in-house lobbyist for the Community Financial Services Association of America (CFSAA). His lobbying registration was filed in March but backdated to late January.

Halloran will be lobbying for the “small dollar, short-term loans” advocate on “[i]ssues regarding the regulation of short term financial products,” the disclosure form states.

CFSAA is not new to the lobbying game, having consistently used outside firms since 2000. But the in-house lobbyist registration comes at a particularly sensitive time for the industry as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has pledged to investigate the payday loan industry's practices.

The association paid $300,000 in lobbying feels to Sheffield Brothers and Timothy R. Rupli & Associates last quarter. Those firms reported working on issues related to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, specifically “treatment of community lenders and the formation of CFPB.”

This will be Halloran’s first time registering as a lobbyist, Legistorm first reported. A CFSAA staffer confirmed that Halloran now works for the organization.

CFSAA and Halloran did not respond to immediate requests for comment. 

Lobbying fees are not reported on registration forms.

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