WASHINGTON–Will 2017 be the year marijuana-related businesses aren’t burying barrels of cash like something out of Breaking Bad?
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) is championing an effort in Congress to expand access to financial services for marijuana-related businesses. As CUToday.info has reported extensively, Warren noted the $7 billion marijuana industry in the U.S. is largely prohibited from accessing the banking system due to federal law, which forces those businesses to rely on cash and makes them vulnerable to crime.
In November, 2016 Massachusetts approved a ballot initiative that legalizes recreational use of pot. Following the vote Warren joined with nine other senators in sending a letter to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network urging it to issue additional guidance to help banks provide services to marijuana shop vendors.
Warren, a member of the Senate Banking Committee, said the benefits of including marijuana-related businesses in the banking system are numerous.
"You make sure that people are really paying their taxes. You know that the money is not being diverted to some kind of criminal enterprise," Warren said in a statement. "And it's just a plain old safety issue. You don't want people walking in with guns and masks and saying, 'Give me all your cash.'"
A spokesperson for FinCEN said the agency is reviewing the letter from the senators.
The National Cannabis Industry Association said there are approximately 1,100 marijuana businesses nationwide.