Hopes to improve and increase marijuana banking services, which were constrained by safe and fair enforcement (Safe) the Banking Act (a serious and innate federal bill for federal marijuana banking), currently choppy since the Safe Banking Act was excluded from the Senate for the National Defense Authorization Act (“”NadaThe effect? Licensed firms are left hanging high and dry (repeatedly) when it comes to marijuana banking services.
Despite the fact that this bipartisan legislation passed in the House of Representatives no less than five Times for the past three years, the Senate hasn’t had it. The usual suspects in the Republican Party are not necessarily among the resisters. It’s actually a group of powerful Democrats (looking at Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senator Cory Booker) who insist we can’t pass partial federal cannabis reform because it would reduce pressure on Congress to legalize/decriminalize cannabis further, a broader sweeping bill .
Into this situation, all I can really do is shake my head. Especially given that these Democratic politicians have been promoting cannabis legalization, reform, and progress for some time now. It is quite clear that all we have heard is the rhetoric of voters and stakeholders. Marijuana banking reform seems like a no-brainer and an overall win for the industry.
In this latest congressional misadventure on cannabis, important negotiations have taken place over it including the massive NDAA Banking SAFE Act. And it’s not uncommon to pass individual laws in things like the NDAA that have nothing to do with national defense. Today’s joke here is that we can’t get banking cannabis into the NDAA, but Congress was more than happy to include the creation of a permanent study desk foreign body activity. priorities, Am i right?
It was the entire cannabis industry begging Standard access to bank accounts and financial services from financial institutions since at least 2010 everyone industry levels, large and small and in every state, due to the enormous public safety problems caused by the management of all cash business. An example is the cannabis business in Auckland Those who could not secure their bank accounts found themselves permanent victims of robbery with little or no redress. Running an all-cash business makes accounting, paying taxes, and employee payroll a complete nightmare.
The general lack of marijuana banking services, and the routine closing of cannabis bank accounts once financial institutions have become wise to things, also prevents cannabis companies from accessing funds from equity capital/institutional financiers. This had the effect of seriously undermining financial support for this major democratic experiment.
Additionally, additional businesses that only support the industry (but do not engage in trafficking) are also hampered by the current marijuana banking situation due to secondary criminal liability arising from potential aiding, abetting, and conspiracy. Business assisting with translation also violates the Controlled Substances Act, so financial institutions are warning against banking with them.
The Senate’s changes to the NDAA must now go through both houses of Congress before President Biden can sign the bill into law. Representative Ed Perlmutter (from Colorado), Principal Sponsor of SAFE Banking Act, vow to file an amendment to the NDAA to bring back the SAFE Banking Act again; is finally I retreated Although such a move could reverse the overall progress around obtaining an NDAA at all.
At the end of it all, the cannabis companies are back to square one. The best they can do is locate and hopefully have a bank with the financial institutions that follow 2014 FinCEN . Directive, which is currently the only banking lifeline for state-licensed cannabis companies. While other cannabis reform bills are rolling around in Congress (such as More work And states reform law), nobody knows their chances of actually going through, and none of those bills have been as close to serious consideration as the Safe Banking Act (SAFE). Combined with meaningful federal tax reform, marijuana banks have just been sent to the back of the line. once again.
