Maine senator calls for crackdown on ‘snake oil and fine print’ payday loans State Sen. Rick Bennett of Oxford calls for limits on how much lenders can charge for short-term loans to hard-pressed Mainers. Share The effective U.S. payday loan interest rates, by state, for a $300 loan. In Maine, it’s 217%, the second highest in New England. Center for Responsible Lending Desperate for cash and unable to access traditional lenders for all sorts of reasons, some Mainers turn to financial outfits that give out payday loans with terms that are sometimes impossible to pay back. In a bid to ...