Bankers have become more uncertain about how to serve marijuana businesses owing to confusion about which states deem them essential.
The proposal would give a safe harbor to financial institutions that work with cannabis companies in states where the substance is legal. But the bill, which would direct $3 trillion in aid to struggling households, businesses and local governments, faces long odds in the Republican-controlled Senate.
The NACUSO annual gathering and a new event focused on cannabis banking for the industry have both been shuttered.
Financial institutions’ legislative agenda was already a low priority in Congress. Lawmakers’ efforts to stabilize the economy have shifted attention even farther away from bills that would benefit the industry.