In today’s HK Cannabis Law Newsletter, we present information and: a trio of articles and regarding President Biden’s surprising step of firing White House staffers over previous cannabis use, the recent appointment of California Rep. Rob Bonta as Attorney General, the unprecedented financial investment the cannabis industry is attracting; the state of New York’s recent legalization of recreational cannabis; new data confirming that sanctioned cannabis use does not result in heightened crime rates, or other adverse effects; and federal banking for the cannabis industry appears closer than ever as a dispensary was able to obtain a federal loan, and the U.S. Senate introducing its own bill to facilitate banking for cannabis businesses.
President Biden let go of several White House staffers based on their use of recreational cannabis;
The White House defends its decision to do so based on the fact that cannabis is still illegal and they felt their decisions were fair;
This decision has faced heavy criticism from fellow Democrats as there is burgeoning support for decriminalization of cannabis and removing the stigma surrounding its use,
Meanwhile the California cannabis industry has reason to celebrate over the announcement that Assemblyman Rob Bonta (D-Alameda) will be the next California Attorney General;
Cannabis companies are now attracting major investors, as seen in Dutchie’s recent $1.7 B valuation, showing that the stock-market is as optimistic and confident as ever in cannabis businesses and investing in them;
The state of New York legalized cannabis which will lead to an estimated $4.2 B recreational cannabis market;
NPR released recently compiled data demonstrating that legalizing cannabis had no visible impact on crime rates nor on youth drug addiction;
Harborside, a California dispensary, was able to secure a $12 M loan from a federal bank, a landmark shift in the attitude of well-established federal banks approving financial support to a cannabis dispensary;
In a seemingly parallel vein, the U.S. Senate authored its own version of a similar House proposal to increase the availability of cannabis industry access to banking, and ease the current restrictions, a third of the Senate now supports the bill.