A measure that would have protected banks from federal regulators when dealing with marijuana-related business has been rejected.
On Wednesday, the House Appropriations Committee defeated the Safe Banking Amendment offered by Congressman Dave Joyce (R-OH).
Before the vote, Joyce said that the issue is “not whether or not one approves of marijuana. This is about public safety and financial transparency.”
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According to NORML:
The defeat of the Safe Banking Amendment was not a vote about marijuana, but rather it was about normalizing a nascent industry that serves hundreds-of-thousands of customers in the majority of US states where cannabis is currently regulated. Once these companies have an easier time conducting their day-to-day operations, then they should be willing to offer more consumer-friendly prices instead of inflating them at the point of sale to cover backend costs associated with operating as an all-cash business.
Currently, hundreds of state-legal, licensed, and regulated businesses do not have access to the banking industry and are unable to accept credit cards, deposit revenues, or write checks to meet payroll or pay taxes. This situation is untenable. No industry can operate safely, transparently, or effectively without access to banks or other financial institutions.
Earlier this week, the Fraternal Order of Police urged House lawmakers to reject the cannabis banking move:
Letter to @USRepRodney & @NitaLowey advising them of our strong opposition to any amendment that would allow the marijuana industry full access to the American banking system. Drug cartels will be given the opportunity to launder money under the guise of marijuana normalization pic.twitter.com/y5a0gHPIUi
— National Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) (@GLFOP) June 12, 2018
