search.noResults

search.searching

saml.title
dataCollection.invalidEmail
note.createNoteMessage

search.noResults

search.searching

orderForm.title

orderForm.productCode
orderForm.description
orderForm.quantity
orderForm.itemPrice
orderForm.price
orderForm.totalPrice
orderForm.deliveryDetails.billingAddress
orderForm.deliveryDetails.deliveryAddress
orderForm.noItems
Views from Washington, D.C.


Ending Operation Choke Point for Good


Congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer


     At the federal level, however, cannabis is still classified as a Schedule I substance, which is defined by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration as a “drug, substance or chemical … with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.” Tere is a bipartisan consensus here in Congress that action needs to be taken regarding marijuana, particularly with banking, but the path forward is not totally clear because of the differing laws between


individual states and the federal government.


Recently, the House passed the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act on a bipartisan basis. Tis bill would allow banks to provide the necessary financial services to cannabis businesses where the substance has been legalized. Although I do take issue with the underlying bill and believe we have a long way to go with cannabis regulation and the confusion surrounding it in this country, my provision to end Operation Choke Point was included in the SAFE Banking Act, which


My provision would ensure that politically motivated regulators would not be able to attack legally operating businesses through the financial system.


12 mobankers.com


caused me to support it. As you know, Operation Choke Point is an Obama- era initiative led by the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation that sought to eliminate financial services for legally operating businesses that were politically unaligned with the administration’s ideals.


My provision would ensure that politically motivated regulators would not be able to attack legally operating businesses through the financial system. Be it an ATM operator, firearm manufacturer or cannabis business owner in a state where it’s been legalized, all legitimate, law-abiding American businesses should have access to credit, regardless of their political ideology. However, during President Obama’s


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32