(From Politico Pro – 02/04/2019)
By Zachary Warmbrodt

The House Financial Services Committee is expected to hold a hearing next week that will look at problems banks face when trying to serve marijuana businesses that are permitted in a growing number of states, sources familiar with the matter said.

The hearing would be a major step toward potentially easing federal restrictions that have led to complications for lenders.

The subcommittee hearing — the first of its kind at Financial Services — is expected Feb. 13, though the schedule has not been announced and could change.

The session will add momentum to a banking industry push to resolve legal conflicts that have left lenders skittish about serving cannabis clients in parts of the country where recreational marijuana use is allowed. The problem is that federal law bans the sale of marijuana.

The initial committee action is a potential precursor to the House taking up cannabis banking legislation such as that introduced by Reps. Ed Perlmutter (D-Colo.) and Denny Heck (D-Wash.).

Their bipartisan bill would shield banks and credit unions from federal penalties for serving marijuana-related businesses in states where cannabis is legal.

Republican leaders refused to move the legislation or hold a hearing when the GOP controlled the House, but Democrats have said new Financial Services Chairwoman Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) is supportive of the effort to find a solution.

While Waters has not outright endorsed a legislative fix, she said in an interview last year that “it’s inevitable we are going to have to talk about” the issue. Recreational marijuana was recently legalized in California.