Three years earlier, Georgia lawmakers handed the high-interest lenders (Cash Advance, PayDay) one of their worst defeats ever by passing a bill that shut down every payday lending outfit in the state.

The loan industry suffered millions in losses. The nation's largest payday lending chain, Advance America, shut down 89 Georgia stores after passage of the 2004 law. Those outlets produced net revenues of $19.9 million in 2003, according to the company's public filings.

Battered by the Georgia law and damaging regulatory decisions elsewhere, the payday lending industry has given itself a makeover to present a more consumer-friendly face. In February, it kicked off a $10 million public education campaign.

Whether the industry has shed its predatory image was tested last March at the General Assembly, where the House looked at a bill to legalize payday lending.

The main advantage with Payday Lending is it is cheaper to do than having overdraft charges applied to your account at most banks but Georgia officials see Payday companies more as loan sharks than saving people money.