GOP lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives this week removed legislative provisions to protect banks that serve cannabis businesses from a federal funding bill after resistance from fellow Republicans. The legislation was removed from the financial services and general government bill that provides annual funding for the Treasury Department and federal payments for the District of Columbia and the Securities and Exchange Commission, as well as other federal agencies, according to a report from The Hill.

The cannabis banking provisions of the bill would have blocked federal funds from being used to “penalize a financial institution solely because the institution provides financial services” to businesses involved in the hemp and state-legal cannabis industries. The legislation was included in the Republicans’ initial draft version of one of the dozen annual funding bills GOP leaders hope to pass into law before election season heats up this fall.

GOP Representative Dave Joyce of Ohio, the co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus and the chair of the House subcommittee responsible for drafting the funding bill, said that the cannabis banking provisions were struck from the legislation after some of his fellow Republicans had “taken issue” with the measure.

“With over 40 states enacting some degree of cannabis reform, it is past time that the federal government respect the will of these states. This issue is especially pertinent as cannabis regulations have been proven to increase public safety and quality of life for Americans,” Joyce said at a subcommittee markup hearing for the legislation earlier this month, The Hill reported.

“My Financial Services and General Government bill included provisions to do just that and ensure states’ rights to make the best choices for their unique constituencies are protected,” the lawmaker added.

During the subcommittee markup hearing, North Carolina GOP Representative Chuck Edwards attacked the cannabis banking provisions of the funding bill, characterizing the legislation as “affirmative authorization disguised as a limitation” and noting that marijuana is still illegal under federal law.

“Our country has never allowed a federally illegal activity to be banked, and it’s important to note that, despite some states trying to legalize marijuana, still a Schedule I drug, marijuana is still illegal,” Edwards told his fellow lawmakers on the subcommittee. “And I believe that it should remain illegal. It’s dangerous, and more and more evidence is being found that it causes irreparable harm, particularly to younger minds.”

Cannabis Banking Legislation An Elusive Goal

Although the Biden administration has taken steps to reclassify cannabis under the Controlled Substances Act, the full legalization of recreational marijuana at the federal level is still seemingly years away. While Congress is still opposed to comprehensive legalization, many lawmakers, particularly from states that have legalized medical marijuana or adult-use cannabis, want to see federal banking restrictions on cannabis businesses eased. Under federal drug and money laundering laws, financial institutions are subjected to onerous federal restrictions on cannabis business accounts, making banking services for weed companies expensive or unattainable.

Legislation to ensure equal access to banking services for businesses in the cannabis industry, the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act, has been passed in the House, either as standalone legislation or attached to another bill, more than half a dozen times. But so far, the Senate has failed to bring the legislation, including a revamped measure known as the Secure and Fair Enforcement Regulation (SAFER) Banking Act, up for a vote by the full chamber.

After the cannabis provisions were stricken from the funding bill, Joyce vowed to continue efforts to ease banking restrictions on marijuana businesses.

“While the provisions maintain strong bipartisan support, as Chairman, I will work to alleviate their concerns but will not delay my responsibility to fund the government and therefore my legislation in the meantime,” he said Thursday. “However, let me be clear, I will not abandon this effort in Congress and will continue to work with my colleagues in good faith to ensure they become law.”

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Bank of Guam announced in a press release on Wednesday that the launch of “Cannabis Banking” will give it a “platform [to allow] cannabis clients the ability to share data from their day-to-day business activities, such as sales, inventory and required licensing documentation.” 

According to The Guam Daily Post, “Cannabis Banking” will make the institution the first in the region “to serve ‘all tiers’ of cannabis-related businesses, or CRBs.”

“It has always been the mission of our founder to serve the underserved and to provide access to safe and secure banking services to our communities. This now includes our cannabis-related businesses. As your partner in growth, we are committed to extending our expertise as trusted financial advisers to this new industry and to allow our local cannabis-related businesses who follow the process and play by the rules, a fair chance to succeed,” Bank of Guam President and CEO Joaquin L.G. Cook said in the press release, as quoted by the Guam Daily Post.

Per the outlet, Bank of Guam will begin this month to “offer deposit and lending services to CRBs in Guam and Saipan legally licensed to engage.” Those CRBs are “organizations or businesses that grow, process, dispense, administer or derive income from selling marijuana products,” according to the Daily Post, which offered the following breakdown of the qualifying businesses:

“(Tier 1) Direct Cannabis-Related Businesses: Businesses licensed to touch the plant directly. Types of direct CRBs include adult use/medical use, retail, processing, cultivation, dispensaries, seed producers, testing, delivery and consumption lounges. (Tier 2) Indirect Cannabis-Related Businesses: Includes industry-specific professional services. Types of indirect CRBs include operations support such as attorneys and accountants, landlords, hydroponic suppliers, packaging suppliers, delivery device suppliers, security firms, cannabis consultants, marijuana testing facilities, employment/payroll providers and cannabis software providers. (Tier 3) Hemp-Related Businesses: Businesses licensed by the United States Department of Agriculture or state regulatory agency to grow, test, or otherwise prepare hemp. (Tier 3) Cannabidiol Businesses: Businesses engaged in the production or sale of hemp-derived cannabinoids intended for human or animal consumption, as regulated by the Food and Drug Administration.”

Guam legalized recreational cannabis in 2019 with the “Guam Cannabis Industries Act,” which, per NORML, “legalizes the personal possession of marijuana by adults, and establishes regulations governing the plant’s commercial production and retail sale.” 

NORML continued: “The law permits those age 21 or older to legally possess and transfer up to one ounce of marijuana flower and/or eight grams of concentrated cannabis. The measure, which took immediate effect, also permits adults to privately cultivate up to six cannabis plants (no more than three mature) in an ‘enclosed, locked space.’ Public consumption of cannabis will remain a violation of law. The Act creates a new regulatory board to draft rules governing the plant’s commercial production and retail sale. The board has a one-year timeline to adopt rules necessary to permit for the operation of licensed cannabis establishments.”

Guam’s regulated cannabis market has been slow to take shape, however. In 2022, it was reported that no one had applied for a cannabis retail license yet. 

According to the Guam Daily Post, the “cannabis industry has yet to take off on Guam as there have been various roadblocks, including permitting issues that have affected at least one potential cultivator.”

The outlet said that Guam is still awaiting clearance on a crucial testing laboratory. 

“A testing laboratory is integral to developing a commercial cannabis industry on Guam. No cannabis or cannabis products can be sold without being tested for potency and safety. Essentially, without a testing laboratory, there can be no industry on the island under the current regulations,” the outlet explained.

In 2021, Guam’s governor, Lou Leon Guerrero, said that the territory had reached an agreement with a U.S.-based company called Metrc to oversee the cannabis regulatory systems. Guerrero’s office said at the time that Metrc’s “system combines advanced software, radio-frequency identification (RFID), a dedicated customer support team, and a secure database to track cannabis from growth, harvest and processing, to testing, transport, and sale,” and that the company “holds exclusive government contracts in various areas of the United States, including Alaska, California, and Washington, D.C.”

“Over the last decade, we have seen substantial evidence that cannabis has medicinal benefits. With the final review by our Cannabis Control Board on the rules and regulations for the industry, we can more efficiently control recreational use and ensure safe and regulated products,” Guerrero said at the time. “The cannabis industry will benefit our community by funding expanded public services in health and public safety, and providing alternative treatment and rehabilitation for people who need it.” 

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The new CLIMB Act would help cannabis businesses access banking services, and list on the stock exchange. It emphasizes small, minority-owned businesses.

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More than two months after the House of Representatives passed the SAFE Banking Act yet again, pressure is mounting on the U.S. Senate to finally take up the legislation that would allow financial institutions to provide services to cannabis businesses. 

The latest round of lobbying came last week from a pair of state treasurers: Colorado’s Dave Young and Washington’s Mike Pellicciotti.

The two Democratic officials took to Twitter on Friday to sound the alarm on the dangers posed to cannabis dispensaries in the absence of the reform. 

In Washington state, a spate of robberies of cannabis stores has underscored how vulnerable such establishments are due to the amount of cash on hand. 

“Colorado weed stores, along with other states with legal cannabis businesses, are headed into their busiest week of the year,” Young tweeted, alluding to this week’s 4/20 festivities, “yet these businesses must dangerously operate in a cash-based world. Let’s pass the #SAFEBankingAct this #fourtwenty.”

Pellicciotti’s official account, meanwhile, shared a news story from last week detailing an armed robbery of a cannabis shop that ended in a chase with Washington State Patrol.

“Another alarming example of why #Congress needs to pass the #SAFEBankingACT and allow access banking for a safer #cannabis retail industry,” the tweet from Pellicciotti’s account said.

Pellicciotti went to Washington, D.C. last month to meet with members of his state’s Congressional delegation, and to convey the urgency surrounding the bill. 

Last month, the Seattle Times reported that there had been nearly 70 armed robberies of cannabis shops in the state this year, doubling the totals for all of last year and 2020. 

“You rob the places where the cash is,” Pellicciotti said after his lobbying trip, as quoted by local television station KING5. “These robberies are tragic. But these robberies are also preventable.”

”You can’t have a $1.4 billion a year transaction taking place in the state of Washington in cash and not have the risk of these type of robberies … It’s time,” added Pellicciotti.

Pellicciotti wasn’t the only one promoting the bill on Capitol Hill. The Hill reported that there was “an in-person lobbying blitz” last month involving “more than 20 chief executives of top cannabis companies [who] urged lawmakers in both parties to pass the SAFE Banking Act.” 

The House of Representatives passed the SAFE Banking Act in February. 

If that sounds familiar, it’s because the House also passed the bill last year. 

In fact, February’s passage marked the sixth time that the SAFE Banking Act won approval in the House since it was originally introduced in 2013 by Colorado Representative Ed Perlmutter.

“Cannabis-related businesses—big and small—and their employees are in desperate need of access to the banking system and access to capital in order to operate in an efficient, safe manner and compete in the growing global cannabis marketplace,” Perlmutter said in a statement following the latest passage.

With about six months to go until the midterm elections, the onus is on Democrats in the Senate to get the two major pieces of federal cannabis reform over the finish line. 

In addition to the SAFE Banking Act, the Democratic-led House also approved the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement (MORE) Act at the beginning of the month, a bill that would end the federal prohibition on cannabis. 

The Democratic leadership in the Senate intends to introduce its own version of a legalization bill, known as the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act, but that legislation likely won’t be unveiled until sometime this summer.

Last week, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said that the Senate’s legalization bill will be introduced ahead of the Congressional recess in August. Schumer had previously said that the measure would be introduced by the end of this month.

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With an effort to give cannabis businesses access to financial institutions stalling in Congress, some lawmakers in Pennsylvania are taking matters into their own hands. 

A committee in the state Senate on Wednesday approved bipartisan legislation to “afford state-legal cannabis better access to banking and insurance services,” according to local television station WHTM. This would help with the overwhelming problem in legal cannabis of the lack of access to safe banking resources. 

Per the station, the bill “authorizes but does not require financial institutions to provide services to state-legal cannabis businesses,” while also permitting “Pennsylvania’s medical cannabis industry the ability to take out ordinary business expenses when filing state taxes.”

According to Local 21 News, the “bill puts safeguards in place so banks and insurers can do business with the medical cannabis industry without fear of penalty.”

The bill was written by two state senators: Republican John DiSanto and Democrat Sharif Street. It was then approved by the State Senate Banking and Insurance Committee.

“Access to financial and insurance services is essential for operating any business, and it is against the public interest to relegate a multi-billion-dollar industry to deal in piles of cash,” DiSanto said, as quoted by WHTM. “Banking this cash safely in Pennsylvania provides certainty for businesses, is a huge opportunity to grow our economy and should ultimately lower costs for medical cannabis consumers.”

“This is a huge step in the right direction making it easier for banks to do something because right now, most banks are scared to do anything,” said Street, as quoted by Local 21 News. “The law is set up in a way where we are treating these folks like they are involved in illegal drug trafficking.”

The bill represents an effort to bring state-level reform in an area of cannabis policy where Congress has fallen short. It could mean more access to basic financial resources for local businesses. 

Earlier this year, the House of Representatives once again passed the SAFE Banking Act, which would enable banks to provide financial services to cannabis businesses. It was the sixth time that the House passed the legislation, which was first introduced in 2013 by Democratic Congressman Ed Perlmutter of Colorado. 

“Cannabis-related businesses—big and small—and their employees are in desperate need of access to the banking system and access to capital in order to operate in an efficient, safe manner and compete in the growing global cannabis marketplace,” Perlmutter said in a statement at the time.

Street said that he is confident the bill will be approved in both the state House and Senate. And there is cautious optimism among advocates that the SAFE Banking Act will finally clear both houses of the Democratic-controlled Congress this year. 

There is growing urgency to get something done. In Washington state, a series of armed robberies at cannabis dispensaries has underscored the dangers that accompany having so much cash on hand. 

The Seattle Times reported earlier this month that “there have been around 67 armed robberies so far in 2022,” up from 34 in 2021 and 27 in 2020.

That worrisome trend has prompted officials in Washington to take action when it comes to banking access.  

A Republican state senator in Washington introduced a bill last month that would tack on an additional year of prison time for any individual convicted of robbing a cannabis store. 

And earlier this month, the state treasurer, Mike Pellicciotti, traveled to Washington, D.C. to urge passage of the SAFE Banking Act.

“You rob the places where the cash is,” Pellicciotti said, as quoted by local television station KING5. “These robberies are tragic. But these robberies are also preventable.”

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The murder of Jordan Brown has forced me to change my opposition to the SAFE Banking Act. It should change Sen. Cory Booker’s mind too.

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According to data collected in a national survey, released March 8, conducted by Morning Consult, and on behalf of the American Bankers Association, the majority of Americans want Congress to get the ball rolling with cannabis banking reform. 

Lack of banking access forces cannabis businesses to deal in cash—which has proven to be exceedingly reckless. A dangerous pattern of robberies formed in certain states related to cannabis, money, and how the two intersect. 

The survey data suggests that the majority of Americans are satisfied with their bank account, but the survey also questioned participants about their views on allowing cannabis businesses to have access to banking institutions and whether that should be allowed. 

The survey examined consumer views on cannabis banking. A strong majority of American adults—65 percent—support allowing cannabis businesses to access banking services such as checking accounts and business loans in states where cannabis is legal, while only 15 percent oppose. Furthermore, 68 percent of Americans said that Congress should pass legislation so that cannabis businesses can “access banking services and products in states” where it is legal.

Seven in 10 support Congress passing legislation that allows cannabis businesses to access banking services such as checking accounts and business loans, at least in states where cannabis is legal. In many of those states, the businesses still deal in cash. 

“Consumers clearly agree that now is the time to resolve the ongoing conflict between state and federal law so banks can serve legal cannabis and cannabis-related businesses,” said Rob Nichols, ABA president and CEO. “Doing so will help banks meet the needs of their communities while enhancing public safety, increasing the efficiency of tax collections and improving the financial transparency of the cannabis industry.”

Leaders from NORML applauded the new batch of data, particularly for the survey’s inclusion of people’s views on cannabis businesses.

“Americans understand that no industry can operate safely, transparently or effectively without access to banks or other financial institutions and it is self-evident that this industry, and those consumers that are served by it, remain severely hampered without this access,” NORML’s Deputy Director Paul Armentano said, commenting on the polling data. “It is also clear that the status quo is actively hurting small businesses and creating unnecessary barriers to entry for entrepreneurs from those communities that have been disproportionately impacted by decades of cannabis prohibition. In order to truly bring the marijuana industry out of the shadows, actions need to be taken by Congress to repeal these outdated and discriminatory practices.”

According to recent data from the U.S. Treasury Department, only about 11 percent of all U.S. banks and about four percent of all U.S. credit unions are providing banking services to cannabis-related businesses.

In early February, the House of Representatives passed the SAFE Banking Act as part of a separate bill—marking the sixth time the lower chamber of Congress has passed the legislation to grant cannabis businesses access to banking and other financial services.

Members of the House adopted provisions of the banking bill as an amendment to legislation drafted to support U.S. manufacturing and improve competitiveness with China known as the America Creating Opportunities for Manufacturing, Pre-Eminence in Technology and Economic Strength Act of 2022 (America COMPETES Act of 2022).

NORML cited survey data compiled earlier this year by Whitney Economics. That survey reported that over 70 percent of cannabis businesses say that the lack of access to banking services or investment capital is their top challenge. While 42 percent of respondents cited state regulations as the most significant burden facing the industry, only 39 percent cited the influence of the black market.

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Democratic Sen. John Hickenlooper of Colorado last week called for the passage of the SAFE Banking Act, saying that the nation’s refusal to allow cannabis businesses access to traditional financial services is a “recipe for disaster.”

While addressing a virtual policy conference last Wednesday, Colorado Sen. Hickenlooper said that federal regulations that deny banking services to state-licensed cannabis businesses are a magnet for criminal activity and are contrary to the goals of marijuana legalization.

“If you really wanted to create an industry that’s dependent on gangs and cartels, make it all cash,” Hickenlooper said at the Regulating Cannabis event hosted by The Hill. “It’s almost like the system that is there now is oriented towards promoting things that we don’t want.”

Under current federal regulations, banks are subject to penalties under money laundering and other laws for servicing cannabis businesses, even those legal under state law, forcing the licensed cannabis industry to operate in a risky environment heavy in cash. Hickenlooper, who served as Colorado’s governor when the state’s voters legalized recreational cannabis in 2012, said the cash-only system that dominates the cannabis economy is “a recipe for disaster” and a “blueprint for catastrophe.”

“If you de-schedule it, banks can start banking it so it’s no longer a cash business,” Hickenlooper said. “There are multiple negative consequences of having it be a cash business. One is that businesses themselves can’t get loans.”

Colorado Supports the Pending SAFE Banking Act

Under pending federal legislation, the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act, federal banking regulators would be prohibited from penalizing banks that choose to serve cannabis firms doing business in compliance with state law. The legislation was initially introduced in the House in 2013 by Democratic Rep. Ed Perlmutter of Colorado, who has reintroduced the bill each subsequent congressional cycle.

Hickenlooper noted on Wednesday that the SAFE Banking Act would not “oppose the will” of states that have not yet legalized cannabis in any form, adding that the reform would benefit the states that have instituted cannabis policy reforms.

“In terms of banking, I don’t think there’s any benefit to penalizing those states where their citizens have voted to legalize,” he said.

In April, the SAFE Banking Act was approved as a stand-alone bill by the House of Representatives. And in September, the House approved the legislation as part of a must-pass defense spending authorization bill. The House and Senate are currently working toward a consensus on the defense spending bill, leaving the fate of the cannabis banking provisions up in the air.

Bill Has Bipartisan Support

The SAFE Banking Act has bipartisan support in Congress, passing in the Democratic-majority House in May by a vote of 321 to 10 with the support of 106 Republicans, including Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina. Last month, Mace unveiled a separate bill, the States Reform Act, which would legalize and regulate marijuana at the federal level. 

“There’s nothing really controversial about cannabis except for here in Washington where you have some members who are afraid of it, or afraid to touch it,” Mace said last Wednesday. “It shouldn’t be that way.”

Mace’s bill serves as an alternative to the MORE Act, a comprehensive proposal advanced by Democrats that would also legalize cannabis at the federal level. The legislation also includes wide-reaching social equity provisions including expungement for federal cannabis crimes. The MORE Act would levy higher taxes than those in Mace’s bill, with revenue raised dedicated to investments in communities harmed by the War on Drugs.

Mace agreed with Hickenlooper that cannabis banking regulations must be changed, saying that the current system offers an incentive to criminals while putting the owners of legal businesses at risk.

“We’re funding the cartels by having all-cash businesses,” Mace said. “It’s dangerous.”

The SAFE Banking Act also has broad support from governors of jurisdictions that have legalized marijuana. In November, a bipartisan group of 24 governors from states and territories with legal cannabis sent a letter to congressional leaders calling for the passage of the legislation. 

The governors noted in the letter that while cannabis has been legalized in some form by a majority of U.S. states, the continued lack of traditional banking services and large amounts of cash throughout the supply chain leave legal marijuana businesses at increased risk of robbery and other crime. Additionally, the lack of access to loans inhibits the growth of the booming industry.

“The SAFE Banking Amendment will remedy these harms and help keep communities in our states and territories safe by allowing legitimate and legal cannabis companies to access banking services,” the governors wrote. 

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The governors of 24 states and U.S. territories sent a letter to congressional leaders on Thursday calling on lawmakers to pass legislation that would permit financial institutions to provide banking services to the regulated cannabis industry. The letter from the bipartisan group of two dozen governors seeks passage of the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act, which was approved by the House of Representatives in September as part of a comprehensive defense spending authorization bill.

In the letter, which was sent to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and other Democratic and Republican leaders in Congress, the governors of 21 states, Washington, D.C., the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam, call for provisions of the SAFE Banking Act to be included in the final version of the National Defense Authorization Act for the 2022 fiscal year.

Relief for a Cash-Heavy Industry

If passed by the Senate and signed into law, federal banking regulators would be prohibited from penalizing banks that choose to serve cannabis firms doing business in accordance with state law. Under current regulations, banks are subject to penalties under federal money laundering and other laws for servicing such companies, leaving the cannabis industry to operate in a risky environment heavy in cash. The legislation was initially introduced in the House in 2013 by Democratic Rep. Ed Perlmutter of Colorado, who has reintroduced the bill each subsequent congressional cycle.

The letter sent on Thursday, which was led by Democratic Governor Jared Polis of Colorado, notes that 37 states, four U.S. territories and the District of Columbia have passed recreational or medical cannabis legalization measures. But businesses in the regulated cannabis industry are still largely unable to access traditional banking services including deposits, payroll and checking accounts.

“Medical and recreational cannabis sales in the U.S. were estimated to total $17.5 billion last year, but because of antiquated federal banking regulations, almost all cannabis transactions are cash-based,” the governors wrote in their letter. “Not only are cash-only businesses targets for crime, cannabis businesses are further disadvantaged compared to other legal businesses by being unable to open bank accounts or obtain loans at reasonable rates.” 

The SAFE Banking Act was passed by the House of Representatives in 2019 and again last year as part of a COVID-19 pandemic relief bill. The House passed the bill again in April as standalone legislation and has included the measure in the defense authorization bill currently under consideration, but the bill has so far failed to be passed by both houses of Congress and signed into law by the president.

“It’s time for Congress to allow cannabis-related businesses to have better access to the banking system and operate with normal bank accounts,” Polis said in a press release on Thursday. “Thank you to Congressman Ed Perlmutter who has continually pushed for legislation to address this important issue. After years of cannabis being legal in a multitude of states, it is long overdue for cannabis businesses to finally financially operate alongside other businesses in the open national banking system.”

The governors also noted in the letter that while cannabis has been legalized in some form by a majority of U.S. states, the continued lack of traditional banking services and large amounts of cash throughout the supply chain leave legal marijuana businesses at increased risk of robbery and other crime. Additionally, the lack of access to loans inhibits the growth of the booming industry.

“The SAFE Banking Amendment will remedy these harms and help keep communities in our states and territories safe by allowing legitimate and legal cannabis companies to access banking services,” the letter continues. “Financial institutions will subject the funds and account holders to rigorous anti-money laundering and ‘Know Your Customer’ requirements that will further help states where cannabis has been made legal to keep bad actors out of the system.

“The SAFE Banking Act has more bipartisan support than ever before, and Congress must take steps to ensure that this measure is included in the final version of the NDAA that goes to President Biden’s desk,” the governors concluded.

In addition to Polis, the letter to Congress was signed by the leaders of Alaska, California, Connecticut, Guam, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Utah, Virginia, the state of Washington, Washington, D.C. and Wisconsin.

In April, a bipartisan group of 21 governors from a nearly identical list of states and territories called on Congress to pass the SAFE Banking Act after the measure was approved by the House of Representatives.

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The gap between federal and state regulations can form a dangerous trap for buzzing entrepreneurs – Here’s how to navigate the green void.

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