New York and New Jersey cannabis licensees and applicants are advocating for the Senate to pass the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act, maintaining the action would decrease minority business barriers.
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Forty parties, organized by the U.S. Cannabis Council’s (USCC) Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Working Group, forwarded correspondence to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY).
The advocates noted the letter outlines their position while also detailing the manner in which the measure lifting the federal ban prohibiting financial institutions from servicing cannabis businesses addresses a public safety issue.
“The Senate has the votes to pass the SAFE Banking Act, which will help clear hurdles for small business owners and address the harms caused by the federal prohibition of cannabis,” USCC CEO Khadijah Tribble said. “New Jersey and New York are trying to ensure that the communities most harmed by the war on drugs are able to enter the regulated market and seize the opportunities that legalization offers — but breaking through any industry requires access to capital and banking that most cannabis operators don’t get.”
Tribble said lawmakers who care about righting past wrongs and protecting public safety must pass the SAFE Act before the end of the year.
Per officials, the 40 signers of the correspondence are among special equity licensees and applicants entering the legal cannabis market concerned about access to the financial institutions they need to succeed.
“There is cannabis being grown in New York state right now,” Flower City Dispensary President Britni Tantalo said. “There are processing facilities that are built and working to process material. Applications for dispensing have been released. So we need to be ahead of this to make sure that public safety comes first.”