“Now they’re saying, OK, we’ll go back to no banks, just put your money in shoeboxes,” said caregiver storefront owner Andrew Pettingill, who runs Evergreen Cannabis Company in Portland. Last week, Pettingill got an email from his bank, cPort Credit Union, saying they would close his account on July 31. According to that email, obtained by 8 Investigates, the credit union is cutting ties with all medical marijuana caregiver storefronts. A caregiver storefront is smaller than a medical marijuana dispensary. They have different licensing requirements but are otherwise regulated in the same manner. In that notice, cPort President and CEO Kelsey Marquis wrote, “as banking regulatory expectations continue to evolve, we have carefully reassessed our risk exposure and concluded that this change is necessary to ensure ongoing compliance with federal and state expectations.”Marijuana is still illegal at the federal level, so many national banks won’t work with dispensaries. Local credit unions have been a lifeline for recreational and medical cannabis businesses alike. With few other options, cPort could leave hundreds of small business owners without a financial institution. “CPort was one of the first banks to work with us, one of the first credit unions to work with us,” said Pettingill, who’s been banking with cPort for roughly 11 years. “So, it’s definitely going to affect a lot of people, and where do we go next?”Adult-use cannabis businesses are required to file detailed reports that make it easy for regulators to track where the marijuana was grown and how much is being sold. In an effort to prevent money laundering, federal regulators expect medical marijuana shops to follow the same reporting requirements, but in Maine, they’re not required to, which is putting credit unions in a difficult spot. “We’re up against the feds,” said Maine Credit Union League Vice President Jen Burke. “So, we want to make sure we’re acting in compliance, and we are just grasping at straws in this gray area without the assistance that we need.”After 8 Investigates reached out to cPort, they asked the Maine Credit Union League to speak on their behalf. Burke says the disparity between state and federal regulations is forcing financial institutions to drop clients that they want to work with. She thinks the state needs to step in and provide more regulation and oversight to help banks, caregivers and the Mainers who’ve come to rely on access to medical marijuana. “I think there certainly is hope that if we can get some changes implemented here and get some regulations in place, it would make things better and more feasible for financial institutions, credit unions, banks to serve these medical caregivers,” said Burke. Without that oversight, Burke, like Pettingill, worries that these businesses will be forced to turn to cash. “The safety and soundness of a cash-only business is something all Mainers should be worried about,” said Burke. The Maine Office of Cannabis Policy has proposed legislation to bring medical marijuana regulations in line with the rules for adult-use cannabis, but those bills failed in the state legislature. “While other states, such as Michigan and Colorado, have regulated medical cannabis through legislation to comply with Federal banking regulations, the Maine Legislature has repeatedly rejected proposals that would align Maine’s regulations with Federal policy,” said OCP spokesperson Alexis Soucy in an email on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the discrepancies don’t stop at reporting requirements, as 8 Investigates has previously reported, medical marijuana also isn’t subject to the same testing requirements as adult-use cannabis.
PORTLAND, Maine —“Now they’re saying, OK, we’ll go back to no banks, just put your money in shoeboxes,” said caregiver storefront owner Andrew Pettingill, who runs Evergreen Cannabis Company in Portland.
Last week, Pettingill got an email from his bank, cPort Credit Union, saying they would close his account on July 31. According to that email, obtained by 8 Investigates, the credit union is cutting ties with all medical marijuana caregiver storefronts.
A caregiver storefront is smaller than a medical marijuana dispensary. They have different licensing requirements but are otherwise regulated in the same manner.
In that notice, cPort President and CEO Kelsey Marquis wrote, “as banking regulatory expectations continue to evolve, we have carefully reassessed our risk exposure and concluded that this change is necessary to ensure ongoing compliance with federal and state expectations.”
Marijuana is still illegal at the federal level, so many national banks won’t work with dispensaries. Local credit unions have been a lifeline for recreational and medical cannabis businesses alike. With few other options, cPort could leave hundreds of small business owners without a financial institution.
“CPort was one of the first banks to work with us, one of the first credit unions to work with us,” said Pettingill, who’s been banking with cPort for roughly 11 years. “So, it’s definitely going to affect a lot of people, and where do we go next?”
Adult-use cannabis businesses are required to file detailed reports that make it easy for regulators to track where the marijuana was grown and how much is being sold. In an effort to prevent money laundering, federal regulators expect medical marijuana shops to follow the same reporting requirements, but in Maine, they’re not required to, which is putting credit unions in a difficult spot.
“We’re up against the feds,” said Maine Credit Union League Vice President Jen Burke. “So, we want to make sure we’re acting in compliance, and we are just grasping at straws in this gray area without the assistance that we need.”
After 8 Investigates reached out to cPort, they asked the Maine Credit Union League to speak on their behalf. Burke says the disparity between state and federal regulations is forcing financial institutions to drop clients that they want to work with. She thinks the state needs to step in and provide more regulation and oversight to help banks, caregivers and the Mainers who’ve come to rely on access to medical marijuana.
“I think there certainly is hope that if we can get some changes implemented here and get some regulations in place, it would make things better and more feasible for financial institutions, credit unions, banks to serve these medical caregivers,” said Burke.
Without that oversight, Burke, like Pettingill, worries that these businesses will be forced to turn to cash.
“The safety and soundness of a cash-only business is something all Mainers should be worried about,” said Burke.
The Maine Office of Cannabis Policy has proposed legislation to bring medical marijuana regulations in line with the rules for adult-use cannabis, but those bills failed in the state legislature.
“While other states, such as Michigan and Colorado, have regulated medical cannabis through legislation to comply with Federal banking regulations, the Maine Legislature has repeatedly rejected proposals that would align Maine’s regulations with Federal policy,” said OCP spokesperson Alexis Soucy in an email on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the discrepancies don’t stop at reporting requirements, as 8 Investigates has previously reported, medical marijuana also isn’t subject to the same testing requirements as adult-use cannabis.
Source link 
