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CHICAGO--"Don't throw the baby out with the bath water" became the theme of the lending industry at the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the US Treasury's hearing on predatory lending.

"I say, don't put the baby in scalding hot water so deep the baby is going to drown," responded Deloris Rolle of the Loan Shark Task Force in an emotional speech to William Apgar, assistant secretary of HUD. The banking and mortgage industries may fear any legislation, but Rolle fears abandoned houses attracting crime in her neighborhood.

Bruce Baker from the Illinois Bankers Association repeated his mantra over and over in meetings with the city of Chicago and state of Illinois. The mortgage industry doesn't want any limits on the amount of fees they can charge on a loan, insisting that counseling is the answer.

Members of the Illinois Coalition Against Predatory Home Loans and the Chicago Loan Shark Task Force joined NTIC's Gale Cincotta on a consumer advocacy panel. Leaders of Southwest Organizing Project, Northwest Neighborhood Federation, Central Illinois Organizing Project, and the Chicago Loan Shark Task Force joined forces to say that counseling isn't enough and predatory practices must be stopped.

The hearing, held at Chicago Holiday Inn City Center May 25, wrapped up a five-city series of hearings conducted by HUD, which included Atlanta, New York, Los Angeles and Baltimore. The Chicago hearings focused on the city ordinance and the bill introduced to the Illinois state legislature by Representative Dan Burke.

Congress is debating five federal bills. "These hearings are vitally important right now because the industry is pushing a national bill (the Ney bill) that would prevent cities and states from passing any laws to combat predatory practices," said Gale Cincotta of NTIC.