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Today: We look at a series of ads for Yes on Proposition 200.

The campaign: Prop.200, also know as the Payday Loan Reform Act, a statewide initiative.

The medium: Three versions of a direct-mail flier sent to likely voters.

The message: One flier has a cutout photo of the proposition's official language, with the headline, "Check The Facts About Proposition 200 For Yourself. And See Why Payday Loan Reform is Good for Arizonans."

The other two mailers have pictures of people in the area where the ballot language is included on the first flier.

In one of those pictures, a man holds a little girl. The headline says, "Your 'YES' Vote on Prop. 200 Will Preserve Financial Choice And Reform Payday Loans." The piece identifies the man as Andrew from Phoenix and his daughter, Emma-Rae. Underneath them it says, "We should be able to make our own decisions on how we manage our finances. Payday loans may not be for everyone, but some people need them as a financial option."

On the third flier, there's a picture of a regular-looking guy identified as Hector from Casa Grande. The headline says, "Your 'YES' Vote on Prop. 200 Will Kick Unscrupulous Lenders Out of Arizona Communities." Hector's quote says, "If Prop. 200 means more protection for consumers against lenders who don't follow the rules, then count me in."

All three mailers have a list of reasons you should vote for Proposition 200, including:

● Lower payday loan fees.

● The elimination of payday loan extensions, or "rollovers," and the establishment of flexible repayment plans without penalties for those who need them.

● Payday loan fees are lower than overdraft charges, credit card late fees or bounced check fees, with the amount of each fee listed.

The intent: To portray the ballot initiative as a sympathetic, reforming response to consumers who are fed up with predatory lending in Arizona and to frame payday lending as a reasonable borrowing option.

Fact check: The statement that Proposition 200 would lower payday loan fees is true. But voting against Proposition 200 would cause the fees to drop even more. The current maximum annualized interest rate on two-week loans that go unpaid is 459 percent. If Proposition 200 passes, that would be reduced to 391 percent. A "no" vote on Proposition 200 would uphold the current law regulating payday lenders, including their termination date in 2010. Under current law, payday lenders' exemption from Arizona's Consumer Loan Act ends July 1, 2010, at which point they would be forced to lower their interest rates to 36 percent in order to stay in business.

Though the initiative would eliminate rollovers by implementing a 24-hour cooling-off period before another loan can be initiated, it wouldn't necessarily eliminate the cycle of debt. Instead, people will be able to take out a new loan the day after the first loan is paid off. According to the Center for Responsible Lending, data from Florida and Oklahoma — which have mandatory cooling-off periods — show that nearly 90 percent of new loans were made during the same two-week pay period as the previous loan was paid off.

Consumers would be able to request repayment plans, but only once a year.

The fee for a payday loan in comparison to other fees really depends on the amount of the loan. For a $100 loan, the 15 percent cost of a payday loan, which is $15, is lower than most banks' overdraft or bounced-check fees or the late charges of most credit cards. But banks and credit-card companies generally charge a flat fee regardless of the dollar amount, while payday loan fees are a percentage of the loan. So as the loan amount goes up, so too does the amount of interest. And it only remains at that amount as long as you repay the loan in the initial time period and don't take out any new loans after that.