With Congress focused on efforts to stabilize the financial markets in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, the odds for progress on the Secure And Fair Enforcement Banking Act have been particularly narrowed. Before the COVID-19 pandemic hit the U.S., the banking industry had been pushing an already tight timeline to get a bill passed before the November General Election. Last week, more than a dozen major trade groups and advocacy organizations sent a letter to the Chair of the Senate Banking Committee, Chairman Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), urging that he advance a bill protecting financial institutions that service state-legal marijuana businesses from being penalized by federal regulators. This is the first of many letters that Chairman Crapo has received from industry advocates. Just earlier this month, banking associations from 49 states and Puerto Rico reached out and called for the passage of legislation to resolve the issue. Read more on the prospects of Cannabis Banking here.
