Obama to cite payday lending proposals, lawmaker says

President Obama is expected to cite new payday lending proposals during his trip to Alabama on Thursday, according to Rep. Terri Sewell, D-Ala.

Sewell told the Birmingham News that there is an "urgent need for stronger consumer protections and increased transparency" in the payday loan business.

"The economy is slowly recovering, and many of my constituents rely on payday loans to help make ends meet," she said. "I recognize the need for emergency credit, but we must also ensure that these products help consumers, rather than trap them to a perpetual cycle of debt."

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is expected to announce Thursday it is considering new rules for pay day lenders.

The White House said in a statement that Obama's speech overall will be about the "progress we have made to build a safer and stronger financial system, and to protect families from the types of abuses that helped lead to the greatest economic crisis of our lifetimes."

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The administration's efforts include creation of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, designed to protect consumers from "threats like abusive practices of unscrupulous lenders or the fraudulent practices of some debt collectors," the White House said.

The White House also said that, while at the community college in Birmingham, Obama will meet with stakeholders on consumer protection issues.

This is Obama's second visit to Alabama this month. On March 7, the president spoke in Selma for the 50th anniversary of the "Bloody Sunday" attack on voting rights marchers in 1965.