A clampdown on payday lending sailed out of the House yesterday, 91-7, while senators struggled to fashion their own plan to restrict the high-cost instant-loan industry.

Among the opponents of the House proposal were two Republicans from the Richmond area: Dels. William R. Janis of Henrico County and R. Lee Ware Jr. of Powhatan County.

The House bill, opposed by lenders, would limit customers to five loans per year and only one at a time. The measure largely preserves the pricey fees that cash stores charge for loans. The loans are limited by law to $500.

The Senate Commerce and Labor Committee has delayed until today a vote on its version of a proposed overhaul of the payday-lending laws because senators have yet to agree on a solution.

"Are we hopeless?" Sen. Phillip P. Puckett, D-Russell, a banker and sponsor of a reform bill favored by lenders, asked Theodore F. Adams III, a lobbyist for payday opponents. -- Jeff E. Schapiro