Page Eight

THE MICHIGAN DAILY

Saturday, July 13, 1974

Credit bill meets mixed reaction

By ANDREA LILLY
Although praised as a step in
the right direction, a recently
passed state law aimed at halt-
ing discriminatory banking prac-
tices has been criticized by area
women for being potentially in-
effective.
The bill, passed Tuesday by
the state legislature and signed
into law by Gov. William Mil-
liken, prohibits discrimination
in granting loans and other
forms of credit on the basis of
sex, marital status, race, re-
ligion, and blindness.
Conviction under the law
C[OSED
MONDAYS
June, July, Aug.
SAMS
STORE
207 E. Liberty

would be considered a misde-
meanor, carrying a fine of up to
$1,000.
IOr A T, WO PN'S or nni. n-
tions hart simnorted the bill
b"'-s"n they onntended women
were often the victims of dis-
crirminatorv credit and loan
nai;e;e'. TT',we er, the local
ro',ns hal fn'tht to inlde in
the hill a criminal penalty of tip
to 00 davs in iail.
t;'othleen Foitik, c',nttr com-
.,.~ohnner anal vice nresident of
th" Ann Arbor chanter of the
notasnal Or-anieation of Women
(NOW) was content that stch a
bill was finally on the books,
bt she was disappointed with
its toothlessness.
"I'm pleased that the Senate
finally after nearly a year of
nrodding did something about
the bill," she said.
County Commissioner Elita-
beth Taylor echoed Fojtik's
thoaghts. "I think if a jail term
isn't included it can be en-
forced as well," Taylor said.
FIVE YEARS ago Taylor said
that she and her husband ap-
plied for a Federal Housing
Administration loan but were
turned down because the bank
refused to include her salary
as part of their income.
"It's a step in the right direc-
tion," she added about the bill,

"but it's a kind of tokenism.
The problem with tokenism is
that it never gets changed."
The local NOW chapter had
fought over a year to get the
legislation passed. They drew
up the legislation, circulated
petitions in its favor and picket-
ed banks to further their cause.
THE ORIGINAL bill, which
included the criminal penalties,
easily passed the State House of
Representatives earlier this
year. But when the bill reached
the Senate, under the sponsor-
ship of Gilbert Bursley (R-Ann
Arbor), it was sent to the wrong
committee where it was held
up for several months.
Eventually the legislation
reached the Committee on Cor-
poration and Economic Devel-
opment, on which Bursley sits.
At that time, according to
Bursley, it appeared unlikely
the bill would pass unless the
criminal penalties were omitted.
After several weeks of delibera-
tion, the committee came up
with the bill in its present form
and passed the Senate. Criminal
charges were included in the
form of a misdemeanor and the
jail sentence eliminated.
"I'm glad," said Mary Pence,
a member of NOW, "that Burs-
ley finally saw the light and
realized that without some kind

of criminal penalty the bill
would be nothing. If the criminal
penalty wasn't in, a person
would have to file a civil suit
and that could take two years."
John Paul, of the National
Bank and Trust in Ann Arbor,
was somewhat skeptical of the
bill's actual importance.

"I think that it is an un-
necessary piece of legislation.
Most bankers are responsible
people," he said.
"How the heck do you define
what sex discriminnation is?"
he added. "People just don't
like to admit that their credit
is not good."


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AP Photo
Disorder in Baltimore
Area youths break into a store in East Baltimore, where a
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So, please, be careful with fire when
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