As lawmakers work to advance marijuana banking reform, a coalition of cannabis regulators representing 40 U.S. states and territories are explaining to Congress just what the current lack of access to traditional financial services means—not just for the businesses and the programs they oversee, but for the regulators navigating this federal-state conflict themselves. The non-partisan Cannabis Regulators Association (CANNRA), which doesn’t take a stand on legalization itself, sent a letter to congressional leaders on Wednesday, outlining three key areas of concern for their states’ respective marijuana markets under the status quo of federal prohibition. The letter doesn’t specifically endorse the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act—which is a major component of a debate playing out in a bicameral conference committee where lawmakers are seeking to attach the legislation’s language to a large-scale manufacturing bill. But it does say that the “lack of safe banking and financial services for the cannabis industry and for those indirectly involved in cannabis marketplaces has become a dire public safety issue.”
Kyle Jaeger, Marijuana Moment, 05/18/2022 11:27:00