SAVE MONEY ON TRAVEL DEALS

Advance American Cash Advance Centers Inc. decided to discontinue the short-term, high-interest loans due to concerns that the move somehow affects military readiness, the El Paso, Texas, Times reports. For such a loan a borrower will write a check for the loan plus fees and the lender will hold the check until a future date, usually the next pay day. Congress has proposed capping the interest rate at 36 percent but loan companies say that doesn't let them cover their costs.

At a recent hearing of the Senate Banking Committee, a Department of Defense official testified that payday lending adds to serious financial problems for many military families.

The department estimates that 225,000 families or 17 percent of the military use payday loans.

"We want to remove any perceived distractions to military readiness at this time of war", says Jamie Fulmer, a spokesman for Advance American Cash Advance Centers.

Fulmer's South Carolina-based firm operates 2,728 offices nationwide, including two in El Paso.

He says about 1 per cent of the company's customers are military members.