Pubdate: Sat, 11 Jul 2015 Source: San Francisco Chronicle (CA) Copyright: 2015 Hearst Communications Inc. Contact: http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle/submissions/#1 Website: http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/388 Author: Joe Garofoli SENATE BILL WOULD LET BANKS ACCEPT MARIJUANA BUSINESSES A bipartisan group of senators is hoping to solve one of the most pressing problems facing the booming multibillion-dollar marijuana industry: Banks still shun legal cannabis businesses. Currently, marijuana is illegal under federal law, making banks reluctant to deal with anybody in the business, for fear that federal regulators will fine them for money laundering. Even though medicinal marijuana is legal in 23 states and the District of Columbia, and recreational pot is kosher in four states, much of the industry's financial transactions are conducted like a street dealer's would be - - in cash only. As a result, many dispensary owners pay their taxes in large sums of cash. In California's Emerald Triangle, a trio of northern counties where 60 percent of the nation's herb is grown, farmers hide huge stacks of cash in everything from deep holes to tree stumps. On Thursday, six senators - three Republican, three Democrats - teamed up on an attempt to end this era by introducing the Marijuana Business Access to Banking Act. It would enable banks to provide depository and other financial services to cannabis businesses that operate in states where it is legal. "Forcing businessmen and businesswomen who are operating legally under Oregon state law to shuttle around gym bags full of cash is an invitation to crime and malfeasance. That must end," said Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., who co-sponsored the bill. Merkley's fellow sponsors include Ron Wyden, D-Ore., Patty Murray, D-Wash., Rand Paul, R-Ky., and both Colorado senators. Oregon, Washington and Colorado are three of the states where recreational cannabis is legal. Alaska is the fourth. In April, Rep. Ed Perlmutter, D-Colo., introduced a similar version of the measure in the House, and it currently has 26 co-sponsors. With an estimated 40 percent of the marijuana-related businesses in Colorado being unbanked, Perlmutter said, "This means hundreds of millions of dollars in cash are moving around the streets of Colorado." Cannabis advocates praised the bill Thursday. "Forcing these businesses to deal exclusively in cash makes it difficult for states to collect taxes, monitor transactions and enforce regulations supported by voters," said Dan Riffle, federal policy director at Marijuana Policy Project. "Allowing these businesses to access basic banking services is a critical step toward letting states regulate marijuana as they see fit without federal interference, a position virtually every serious contender for the 2016 presidential nomination - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom