32 Attorneys General Tell Congress to Pass SAFER Banking for Cannabis
The top law officers from both blue and red states are calling on congressional leaders in the U.S. House and Senate to take up legislation to provide a safe harbor to financial institutions wishing to service the cannabis industry.
The bipartisan group of attorneys general from 28 states, Washington, D.C., and three U.S. territories sent a letter Aug. 24 expressing their support for the Secure and Fair Enforcement Regulation (SAFER) Banking Act.
The letter was delivered to Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., their minority leader counterparts, as well as the chairs and ranking members of the Senate Banking Committee and House Financial Services Committee.
“We are a bipartisan group of state and territorial attorneys general who, like you, have a strong interest in protecting the physical and economic well-being of our constituents while enabling economic growth and stability in our respective states,” the attorneys general wrote. “We therefore urge Congress to advance this legislation, which will increase access to regulated banking and financial services for state-regulated cannabis businesses in jurisdictions that have legalized these businesses.”
The letter was spearheaded by the District of Columbia Attorney General Brian Schwalb, Georgia Attorney General Christopher M. Carr, Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown and Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost.
It also included signers from the following states and territories: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South, Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia, American Samoa, Northern Mariana Islands and U.S. Virgin Islands.
“It is increasingly critical to move cannabis commerce into the regulated banking system,” the letter signers wrote, pointing out that the vast majority of states and U.S. territories allow medical cannabis and roughly half the nation permits adult-use cannabis.
“Nationwide, regulated cannabis businesses provided approximately 425,000 jobs in 2024,” they wrote. “These businesses have a sizable economic impact, which is only expected to grow. Industry experts project that combined U.S. annual sales of regulated cannabis could reach $34 billion by the end of 2025.”
Absent of federal legislation, there is a conflict between state-sanctioned cannabis programs and federal banking laws that make the cannabis industry too risky for many banks—especially big banks—to serve. Specifically, federal anti-money laundering laws prohibit depository institutions from handling money that comes directly from criminal activities, such as cannabis sales.
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