A Senate committee chair says he has spoken to Majority Leader Chuck Schumer about bipartisan marijuana banking legislation. He hopes to move it along with other priority bills in the “next six weeks” as well.
Sherrod brown (D-OH), chairman of the Senate Banking Committee, told Punchbowl News that the Secure and Fair Enforcement Banking Act (SAFE Banking Act) is one his top legislative priorities for the fall. While he did not comment on the content of his conversation, Schumer has made it clear in letters to colleagues as well as in a speech on Tuesday on the floor that cannabis banking is an priority.
We want RECOUP. “We want SAFE Banking. In the NDAA we have the FEND Off Fentanyl Act. “All three are my priorities”, Brown said. He was referring to legislation on opioids, banking accountability, and marijuana enforcement in addition the marijuana measure. “We’d like to accomplish all of that within the next six-weeks.”
It is likely that the SAFE Banking Act will not be passed this fall due to a variety of factors. One of these factors is the time required by senators to move through the spending bills necessary to fund the federal government. There’s also a disagreement about a key section of the legislation that stopped it from moving forward during the summer session, before lawmakers went on vacation in August.
Some Democrats are concerned that Section 10 would undermine the banking regulations, and they want to change or remove it. Republicans, however, have stated that they do not support this option. It’s not clear if there was any progress made during the recess in reaching an agreement to allow the bill to pass through the Senate Banking Committee.
Marijuana Moment contacted the offices of Brown, and the leading GOP SAFE Banking sponsor Senator Steve Daines (R MT), for comment but no one was available.
Schumer, for his part said on Tuesday “we have no illusions that we will make progress in the Senate unless we achieve bipartisan agreement” on marijuana reform as well as other priorities like lowering the price of insulin or competing with China on the global economic stage.
He said that “none of this is going to be easy.” The bills will take a lot more work and compromise. If we make progress on these issues, it will improve the lives for average Americans.
Schumer, at a late-July press conference before the lawmakers went on recess, said that Senators were “making progress” in bipartisan discussions about the legislation, and predicted a “very productive fall in Senate.”
Currently, the SAFE Banking Act is co-sponsored by 42 senators, which is nearly half the Senate. Eight Republicans and three Independents are also on board. Insiders claim that the SAFE Banking Act, in its current standalone form, has enough Republican support to pass the Senate with 60 votes.
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Brown and Daines sparred about the next steps of the bill as the summer recess approached. Brown insisted Daines needed to get more GOP co-sponsors. Daines, however, argued that Republicans were already ready to pass the bill as agreed upon.
Daines also warned against trying to expand the measure to include social justice reforms, which progressives would love to add. However, his office told Marijuana Moment that the senator was “open” about adding the expungements language as proposed by Schumer.
In July, the American Trade Association for Cannabis and Hemp, along with other trade groups representing marijuana business in 16 states and Washington D.C., sent a letter to Brown and Banking Committee ranking member Tim Scott (R-SC), imploring them to pass the cannabis banking legislation “without further delay.”
Schumer also talked with a cannabis business leader earlier this summer , after being approached by the entrepreneur at a separate event. According to the entrepreneur, Schumer is “confident” that the cannabis banking bill will pass.
In its current form, the measure protects banks, credit unions and depository institutions from being penalized for working with cannabis businesses licensed by state regulators.
Other people have suggested other changes they would like to see included in the cannabis bill, such as expanding protections for marijuana industry access all forms of financial service, including representative on major U.S. Stock Exchanges.
Other advocates have criticized the request, saying that it would be inappropriate to assist businesses at a time when efforts to legalize cannabis in Congress are stalled.
Sen. Jacky Rose (D-NV), has said that , she wants the SAFE Banking Act passed with an amendment to allow cannabis businesses to have access to federal Small Business Administration services (SBA).
The legislators will continue “to work in a bipartisan manner” in order to accomplish the task.
Sen. Cory Booker, (D-NJ), said that legislators are trying to “resurrect the cannabis reform package“, acknowledging that the failure to advance an industry banking fix “literally” means that hundreds businesses will go out of business.
Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-OR, who is the lead Democratic sponsor for the House version SAFE Banking Act in April, stated at a media briefing that he believes it’s crucial that advocates and legislators align on any incremental proposal to end the war on drugs, cautioning against an “all or nothing” mentality.
The American Bankers Association (ABA), which also renewed its call for passage, did the same. All 50 state chapters of the ABA did the same. Insurance and union organizations also wrote to Congress.
also celebrated its 10-year anniversary in July, since the introduction the first version of the SAFE Banking Act.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, a Democrat, said separately in a Tuesday letter to Joe Biden that he should support the congressional push for marijuana bank reform at a time when the Drug Enforcement Administration is reviewing cannabis scheduling following a rescheduling recommendations from the federal health agency.
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Photo by Mike Latimer.
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