COLUMBUS, Ohio- Ohio Attorney General Yost announced Wednesday he joined a bipartisan coalition that is urging Congress to pass legislation that would give marijuana businesses in states where it’s legal access to the federal banking system.
The 2016 law that legalized medical marijuana in Ohio exempts banks, credit unions and other financial institutions from the state’s criminal laws if they’re providing services to a licensed cannabis business. However, federal regulators prohibit financial institutions from providing services to the businesses. Even if a bank has an Ohio charter, it’s likely insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and regulated by the federal government.
Ohio dispensaries, grow operations, testing labs and processors largely do business with cash.
“When a business is dealing strictly in cash, they’re inviting a whole host of problems,” Yost, a Republican, said in a statement. “No legal business should have to operate in a manner that provides little to no security in their financial transactions.”
Inside an Ohio medical marijuana processing facility
Grow Ohio LLC is extracting THC from marijuana plants and creating tinctures, oils and gummies.
The U.S. House Financial Services Committee approved House Resolution 1595, the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act. It’s now awaiting a vote by the full House.
Yost joins 37 other state and territorial attorneys general who are members of the National Association of Attorneys General. The organization is endorsing the legislation as an official policy position. That’s unusual since the group endorses fewer than a dozen policies a year.
Other members of the coalition: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Colorado, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Guam, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, the Northern Mariana Islands, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
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