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Banking Reform Left Out of Defense Bill

The proposal did not survive congressional negotiations over the must-pass legislation.

The fight to provide legal cannabis businesses with access to the nation’s banking systems appears poised to drag on.

NJ.com reports that the language of the SAFE Banking Act did not survive negotiations on Capitol Hill over the National Defense Authorization Act.

The House included the proposal in its version of the must-pass defense bill.

But the Senate didn’t — and it wasn’t included in a compromise bill now moving through the Capitol.

Senate leaders hope to pass banking reform as part of a broader overhaul of cannabis regulations, which would include social justice provisions.

House proponents, however, suggested that the Senate continued to jeopardize the safety of cannabis businesses and their employees.

Many cannabis operators continue to operate in cash — making them a target for criminals — because the drug remains illegal under federal law.

U.S. Rep. Ed Perlmutter, D-Colo., who proposed the House amendment, vowed to “pursue every possible avenue” to get the measure signed into law.

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