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A strong majority of Americans agree that passing a marijuana banking bill would improve public safety, according to a new poll commissioned by Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA).<\/p>\n
The survey, conducted by Morning Consult, found that 64 percent of Americans feel the provisions of the Secure and Fair Enforcement Regulation (SAFER) Banking Act to allow cannabis businesses to access the banking system will \u201chelp improve public safety.\u201d<\/p>\n
A second question in the poll noted that some cannabis-related businesses are owned and led by people of color, women and members of the LGBTQ community, asking respondents whether \u201copening the banking system to cannabis-related businesses would help these underserved communities.\u201d Fifty-four percent agreed.<\/p>\n
As Senate leadership works to advance the legislation, which cleared committee last September, the ICBA poll that was released last week underscores that the proposal enjoys sizable public support.<\/p>\n
ICBA has long advocated for the bipartisan cannabis banking legislation and commissioned several polls consistently demonstrating its popularity. The association\u2019s president, Rebeca Romero Rainey, said in a press release that this latest survey featuring questions on cannabis banking and other policies of concern for the association shows that \u201cAmericans from coast to coast support our views on key policy issues.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith polling conducted by Morning Consult showing Americans understand the importance of these issues in ensuring continued access to locally based banking, ICBA is proud to continue helping community banks advocate in Washington and power the potential of local communities nationwide,\u201d she said<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n The polling is consistent with findings from a separate American Bankers Association (ABA) survey released last month that found 63 percent of Americans back cannabis businesses banking access<\/a>, compared to just 17 percent who are opposed.<\/p>\n A prior ABA survey, in 2022, found\u00a066 percent of people either strongly (37 percent) or somewhat (29 percent) supported marijuana banking reform<\/a>, while 16 percent either strongly (8 percent) or somewhat (8 percent) opposed it. Nineteen percent of respondents last year said they didn\u2019t know or didn\u2019t have an opinion.<\/p>\n A separate ABA poll earlier in 2022 found that\u00a068 percent of respondents felt Capitol Hill should act<\/a>.<\/p>\n ICBA, meanwhile, also hosted a summit in Washington, D.C. this week, where House Financial Services Committee Chairman Vice Chair French Hill (R-AR) discussed ongoing bipartisan collaboration on a cryptocurrency regulations bill that certain lawmakers, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), hope will be merged with the SAFER Banking Act.<\/p>\n Hill said last week that he\u2019d support a hybrid marijuana banking and cryptocurrency bill, saying \u201cour country will benefit\u201d if both reforms are enacted<\/a>.<\/p>\n There have also been talks about attaching both measures to a must-pass Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization bill. But those plans are meeting some opposition, with a Senate aide telling Marijuana Moment on Monday that Republican leadership is proactively opposing that possibility<\/a>.<\/p>\n A spokesperson for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) separately told Marijuana Moment that the senator, who is considered a legislative gatekeeper in the GOP caucus, \u201ccontinues to oppose marijuana banking.\u201d House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) is also reportedly against the move to attach cannabis banking to the aviation legislation.<\/p>\n The U.S. Cannabis Council (USCC) said in a leaked internal email to members last week that their sources said that lawmakers have abandoned plans to pursue the SAFER Banking Act through the FAA bill<\/a>.<\/p>\n But Schumer is still pushing to get cannabis banking attached to the legislation<\/a>, and\u00a0there are still options on the table to move the SAFER Banking Act. Supporters aren\u2019t giving up hope just yet that McConnell\u2014who championed provisions of the 2018 Farm Bill to federally legalize hemp\u2014can be swayed to let the marijuana financial services reform advance.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, last week Schumer once again\u00a0included the bipartisan marijuana banking bill in a list of legislative priorities<\/a>\u00a0he hopes to advance this year.<\/p>\n Since the Senate recently approved must-pass appropriations legislation and foreign aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, there are heightened expectations that floor action could be on the horizon.<\/p>\n Adding to those expectations is the recent introduction of a bill to\u00a0incentivize expungements for past cannabis offenses at the state, local and tribal levels<\/a>. Schumer has made clear he intends to attach that measure to the banking legislation on the floor.<\/p>\n Schumer also recently asked people to\u00a0show their support for the SAFER Banking Act by signing a petition<\/a>\u00a0as he steps up his push for the legislation. A poll released last month by the American Bankers Association (ABA) shows that roughly three out of five Americans\u00a0support allowing marijuana industry access to the banking system<\/a>.<\/p>\n Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) said that that\u00a0\u201cif Republicans want to keep the House,\u201d they should pass the marijuana banking bill<\/a>, arguing that \u201cthere are votes\u201d to approve it.<\/p>\n Schumer told Marijuana Moment last month that\u00a0the bill remains a \u201cvery high priority\u201d for the Senate<\/a>, and members are having \u201cvery productive\u201d bicameral talks to reach a final agreement.<\/p>\n Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown (D-OH) said last month that\u00a0passing the SAFER Banking Act off the floor is a \u201chigh priority.\u201d<\/a>\u00a0However, he also recently said in a separate interview that\u00a0advancing the legislation is complicated by current House dynamics<\/a>.<\/p>\n House Majority Whip Tom Emmer (R-MN) separately said during a recent American Bankers Association (ABA) summit that he wants to see the SAFER Banking Act move.<\/p>\n He said that, \u201cfor whatever reason, the federal government has been slow\u201d to act on the incremental reform that he supports even though he doesn\u2019t identify as \u201ca marijuana guy.\u201d<\/p>\n One key factor that\u2019s kept the bill from the Senate floor is disagreement over mostly non-cannabis provisions dealing with broader banking regulations, primarily those contained in Section 10 of the legislation.<\/p>\n \u2014 Bicameral negotiations have been ongoing, however, and recent reporting suggests that a final deal could be just over the horizon.<\/p>\n The Democratic Senate sponsor of the SAFER Banking Act, Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), told Marijuana Moment last month that the legislation is \u201cgaining momentum\u201d as lawmakers work to bring it to the floor and pass it \u201cthis year.\u201d<\/p>\n Rep. Earl Blumenauer, founding co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, told Marijuana Moment last week that,\u00a0\u201cevery day we\u2019re closer on SAFE Banking,<\/a>\u00a0and negotiations \u201care ongoing in the House and Senate, and we are, in fact, making progress.\u201d<\/p>\n At the close of the first half of the 118th Congress in December, Schumer said in a floor speech that lawmakers would \u201chit the ground running\u201d in 2024, aiming to\u00a0build on bipartisan progress on several key issues, including marijuana banking reform<\/a>\u2014though he noted it \u201cwon\u2019t be easy.\u201d<\/p>\n Top House Democrat Says Marijuana Rescheduling Is A \u2018Step In The Right Direction,\u2019 While GOP Leader Opposes Reform<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n Photo courtesy of Mike Latimer.<\/em><\/p>\n The post Majority Of Americans Say Marijuana Banking Bill Would Promote Public Safety And Help Underserved Communities, Financial Association Poll Finds<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n
A strong majority of Americans agree that passing a marijuana banking bill would improve public safety, according to a new poll commissioned by Independent Community Bankers of America (ICBA). The survey, conducted by Morning Consult, found that 64 percent of Americans feel the provisions of the Secure and Fair EnforcementContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":458,"featured_media":74886,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18,81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74885"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/458"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=74885"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74885\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":74887,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/74885\/revisions\/74887"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/74886"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=74885"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=74885"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=74885"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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\nRead More: Majority Of Americans Say Marijuana Banking Bill Would Promote Public Safety And Help Underserved Communities, Financial Association Poll Finds<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"