As marijuana shop robberies continue to increase, Washington’s state treasurer is pushing for a cannabis banking bill to help pot shop owners and their employees.
Mike Pellicciotti spent this week in Washington, D.C., meeting with members of the state’s Congressional delegation.
According to Pellicciotti, the number of pot shops targeted by armed robbers is increasing, and he said the motive is simple.
“You rob the places where the cash is,” said Pellicciotti. “These robberies are tragic. But these robberies are also preventable.”
The treasurer blamed federal drug laws that prohibit national banks from getting involved with pot shops in Washington state. That causes most pot shop owners to make their stores cash-only, said Pellicciotti.
The U.S. House of Representatives has repeatedly passed a bill to allow banks to get in the pot business, but the Senate has failed to pass the Secured and Fair Enforcement Banking (SAFE) Act.
Pellicciotti said with Democrats in control of the Senate, he likes the bill’s odds this year. With the rising number of robberies, it should also help get the bill passed.
”You can’t have a $1.4 billion a year transaction taking place in the state of Washington in cash and not have the risk of these type of robberies…It’s time,” said Pellicciotti.
