As the year comes to a close, it seems there’s little talk within Congress about moving a cannabis industry banking access bill—with multiple key House and Senate lawmakers telling Marijuana Moment they haven’t heard anything about a plan to advance the modest reform anytime soon.
Of course, after a historically long government shutdown and other competing priorities, it doesn’t come as a big surprise that legislators wouldn’t have the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act at the top of their lists. But even so, the apparent lack of any meaningful progression in conversations about the proposal among lawmakers who have historically led on cannabis reform issues is notable.
Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH), who is expected the carry the marijuana banking measure in his chamber this Congress, previously said that he imagined the bill would come up over the fall. Those comments came before the shutdown, however, and the bill has not yet been filed in either chamber for the current session.
Now, Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), who has sponsored the legislation in prior sessions, tells Marijuana Moment that the issue is among those Congress that has put “on the back burner,” with Democrats focused on preserving health care subsidies
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