Joyce, Colleagues Reintroduce SAFE Banking Act

Jun 25, 2026

Press

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Representatives Dave Joyce (OH-14), Jim Himes (CT-04), Warren Davidson (OH-08), Nydia Velázquez (NY-07), Brian Mast (FL-21), Lou Correa (CA-46), Guy Reschenthaler (PA-14), and Dina Titus (NV-01) introduced the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act of 2026. This bill would ensure that state-legal cannabis businesses have access to critical banking and financial services.

“State-licensed cannabis businesses employ thousands of Americans and generate significant tax revenue, yet many remain effectively shut out of the traditional banking system. Forcing businesses to operate in cash not only hinders economic growth, but it also opens the doors for illegal activity like money laundering and organized crime,” said Congressman Dave Joyce, Co-Chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus. “This legislation would provide access to capital and the necessary financial services to operate a successful business and keep communities safe. By introducing the SAFE Banking Act, Congress is showing its commitment to supporting small businesses and implementing commonsense cannabis policies that respect states’ rights to regulate the industry. I want to thank my colleagues for their hard work on this bicameral, bipartisan piece of legislation.”

“It’s long overdue that the federal government eliminate its unfair prohibition on state-legal cannabis businesses utilizing basic banking services,” said Congressman Jim Himes. “Forcing legal businesses and their customers to operate exclusively in cash is nonsensical and dangerous, exposing both to unnecessary danger and hindering commerce in a growing industry. This bill would provide certainty for the legal cannabis industry and allow it to serve its customers without fear of federal punishment for conducting legitimate business.”

“Businesses operating legally under state law should not be forced into a cash-only system or denied basic financial services,” said Congressman Warren Davidson. “The SAFE Banking Act reduces the risks created by cash-only operations and gives financial institutions clear rules while protecting them from politically motivated regulatory retaliation. Banks should be free to serve lawful customers without interference from Washington.”

“For too long, legal cannabis businesses have been shut out of the traditional banking system, forced into risky alternatives and made targets for crime. These small businesses are creating jobs and stimulating local economies. They deserve the same access to banking that every other lawful business already enjoys. I am proud to join my colleagues in introducing the SAFE Banking Act, a commonsense, bipartisan bill that will help create jobs throughout the country and grow our economy,” said Congresswoman Nydia M. Velázquez, Ranking Member of the House Small Business Committee.

“The Constitution tells us what the federal government is responsible for, and anything it doesn’t spell out is left to each state to decide. That’s the principle at stake when it comes to cannabis laws. Forcing law-abiding businesses to operate on cash alone turns them and their customers into targets for crime. The SAFE Banking Act brings those dollars into a system where they can be tracked and kept away from criminals. It’s about respecting the states and protecting public safety,” said Congressman Brian Mast, Co-Chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus. 

“Right now, legal cannabis companies are forced to operate using cash only, and that’s no way to run a business since it puts both business owners and the community at risk,” said Congressman Lou Correa. “I am pleased to join my colleagues in introducing this bipartisan, commonsense legislation to fix this and make sure legal cannabis companies have access to the same banking services as everyone else.”

“This legislation will protect livelihoods and strengthen an industry that employs over 400,000 Americans,” said Congresswoman Dina Titus. “The SAFE Banking Act is a critical step towards ending outdated federal barriers that put legitimate cannabis businesses at a disadvantage. This bill will give them access to traditional financial services and provide “safe harbor” protections to financial institutions, lenders, insurers, and others serving the industry, ensuring they are not penalized for working with cannabis businesses.”

“We applaud today’s re-introduction of the SAFE Banking Act and urge Congress to advance this bipartisan legislation so banks can finally provide financial services to state-licensed cannabis businesses, as well as the growing number of accountants, skilled trades, landlords, law firms, and other service providers they rely on to do business. For years, the conflict between state and federal cannabis laws has left many cannabis businesses operating in cash, creating significant public safety risks in states where it’s been legalized. The SAFE Banking Act would provide banks with a clear federal safe harbor, allowing them to serve state-legal businesses while increasing transparency for law enforcement and reducing risks to the public,” said Rob Nichols, President and CEO of the American Bankers Association. “We commend Representative Joyce, Senator Merkley and all of the co-sponsors for their leadership in moving this commonsense solution forward and stand ready to work with Congress to see it signed into law.”

Background:

Most state-legal cannabis businesses, both medicinal and recreational, are denied access to banking and financial services, as banks fear they may be prosecuted under federal law due to federal restrictions on cannabis. In turn, these businesses are forced to operate in cash, leaving them susceptible to criminal activities like money laundering, tax evasion, and armed robbery. With the majority of the U.S. population living in a state with some version of medicinal or recreational cannabis programs, these restrictions negatively affect thousands of small businesses across the country.

The SAFE Banking Act would address these concerns by preventing federal banking regulators from restricting access to financial services to state-legal cannabis companies. Specifically, this bill would prevent these regulators from:

• Prohibiting or discouraging a bank from providing financial services to a state-legal cannabis business,
• Terminating or limiting a bank’s federal deposit insurance primarily because the bank is providing services to a state-legal cannabis business.
• Recommending or incentivizing a bank to halt or downgrade providing any kind of banking services to these businesses.
• Taking any action on a loan to an owner or operator of a state-legal cannabis business.

This legislation would also require banks to comply with guidance from the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCen), as well as protect those who provide financial services to state-legal cannabis businesses from criminal prosecution or asset forfeiture. This extends to Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) and Minority Depository Institutions (MDI) to ensure they can also serve cannabis businesses.

The SAFE Banking Act has passed the House seven times with broad bipartisan support.

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Article Analysis :THE European Union looks set to determine that cannabidiol is a ‘human reproductive toxicant’ in a move which could wipe out the continent’s CBD cosmetic sector and seriously damage the supplements one.

European CBD employs tens of thousands of people, generates revenues close to $2.5bn, with the CBD skin care market, alone, worth over $750m.

However, Business of Cannabis has learnt that following a 2025 submission by ANSES – the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety – the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has agreed with its determination that CBD ‘may damage fertility, the unborn child’ and ‘may cause harm to breast-fed children’.

This news has sent shockwaves through the industry with two of its leading trade bodies warning of significant downstream consequences.

And, in France, we may be already witnessing the consequences of this ECHA determination – even though it still has to be ratified by the European Commission.

Following a year-long review the ECHA reached its toxicity conclusion in March, and in the following month, during a meeting with French CBD industry trade groups, the Directorate General for Food (DGAL) – the country’s food rules enforcement arm – announced it was ‘preparing a national control plan for 2026 targeting all food products and food supplements containing CBD, THC, or any other cannabinoid’.

Industry Reaction

Francesco Mirizzi, Managing Director of the European Industrial Hemp Association (EIHA) which represents scores of European producers, manufacturers and CBD retailers said: “At this stage, it is important to clarify that the process is not yet concluded. 

“The opinion adopted by ECHA’s Risk Assessment Committee (RAC) constitutes a scientific hazard assessment and does not automatically translate into any ban of CBD products in the EU.

 “That said, this development is clearly not positive for the sector and is likely contributing to the renewed restrictive approaches and enforcement actions currently being observed in certain Member States, including France.”

EIHA is talking to the European Commission on this with particular concerns in relation to the EU Cosmetics sector.

Under Article 15 of the EU Cosmetics Regulation, any substance classified as CMR 1A or 1B is strictly prohibited from use in cosmetic products, without a specific exemption.

Mr Mirizzi added: “At EIHA, we intend to actively engage in the next regulatory steps. In particular, we will challenge the proposed Category 1B classification and advocate for a reclassification to Category 2, which we believe would more appropriately reflect the available scientific evidence and the existing uncertainties. 

“In parallel, EIHA also intends to seek a specific exemption as foreseen by the cosmetics legislation.

 “We believe it is essential that future regulatory discussions take place transparently, with proper consideration of scientific evidence, realistic exposure scenarios, and the economic consequences for a sector that is already operating under significant regulatory uncertainty.”



Jacopo Vladimiro Paolini, CEO of Italian CBD company Enecta, and Vice-Chair of the Copa-Cogeca Working Group on Hemp and Flax, said: “The current situation around the ECHA classification process is clearly creating significant concern across the European hemp and CBD sector, particularly due to the potential implications for legal certainty, market access and investment across the value chain.”

French CBD Antipathy

It was back in 2020 that the French authorities first took aim at CBD in the now infamous Kanavape case in which the European Court of Justice determined that it is not a ‘narcotic drug’, thus permitting its sale across member states.

In 2022 the French authorities tried, unsuccessfully, to outlaw the sale of CBD flowers, and in the last few years it has taken aim at the sale of synthetic cannabinoids.

This is all in the broader, pan-European context of the laborious Novel Food process which has seen a recent provisional determination that a safe daily consumption upper-limit of CBD is 2mg per day , for someone weighing 70kg.

French trade group the Union of Industrialists for the Vaporization of Hemp Extracts (UIVEC) first alerted the wider industry to the threat of the ECHA determination early last year, as reported by Business of Cannabis.

It highlighted how the data being used in the ANSES submission refers to the adverse effects on rats, which had been subjected to doses of 300mg per 1kg weight, during trials of the CBD-based drug Epidiolex.

Earlier this week UIVEC had meetings with the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty, during which it highlighted  concerns over April’s ‘unilateral change’ which it said ‘constitutes a sharp departure from the framework that had been jointly built’ in recent years.

It contends that the new crackdown is primarily targeted at the sale of ‘synthetic cannabinoids’ which ANSES raised concerns about in June last year.

Its General Manager Zoé Demange, said: “Our optimistic scenario is that the Ministry adjusts the plan to focus on the actual public health risks identified by the French health authorities in their joint communication of 19 June 2025.”

And she went on to say that ‘growing number of operators are starting to consider legal action to preserve the legal certainty of their activities’.

“The plan, as announced, would have immediate and largely irreversible consequences for these operators in the short term.

“This is a scenario we hope to avoid through dialogue, but it cannot be ruled out at this stage,” she added.

What Happens Next?

The French CBD market is currently valued at €200m in annual turnover, employs between around 15,000 people directly, of which 90% are in SMEs, and is supported by 1,200 agricultural holdings. 

It is distributed through approximately 2,500 specialised CBD Shops and an estimated 20,000 French pharmacies – two thirds of the French pharmacy network.

Business of Cannabis has approached ANSES for a comment on these developments as is awaiting a response.

A spokesperson for the the ECHA, said: “The RAC (risk assessment committee) has adopted an opinion recommending a harmonised classification for cannabidiol, and ECHA will forward this opinion to the European Commission. 

“The Commission will then consider the RAC opinion within its decision‑making procedure. While RAC opinions are a key scientific input and are generally taken into account, their adoption by the Commission is not automatic. The Commission will decide how to proceed.”

The EC normally takes between three to nine months before publishing its draft decision, which then has to go through member state consultation, before it becomes regulation.

The EC’s Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety is separately evaluating CBD for cosmetics and the industry can still submit data to challenge its final decision.