DENVER — Legislation that would provide federal protection for financial institutions that serve state-authorized marijuana and ancillary businesses passed a U.S. House committee on Thursday.
The House Financial Services Committee voted 45-15 to advance the bill after amending it to include provisions to provide a safe harbor for insurance companies and improve access to financial services for minority- and women-owned cannabis businesses.
“This is a historic and critical step forward for the nation’s burgeoning cannabis industry,” Steve Hawkins, executive director of the Marijuana Policy Project, said in a statement. “Regardless of where members stand on legalization, they can agree that it is in the public interest to make banking available to cannabis businesses in states where it is legal.”
