Cannabis: Federal vs State

Soon the majority of the states will have legalized cannabis use, either recreational or medicinal. AKA, the cat is out of the bag.

I am going through the process of applying for a dispensary license, where I will partner with someone. Not shocking; the paperwork is intense with plenty of legal dialects. NY State is attempting to do the right thing by giving the first round of applications to those incarcerated for cannabis use in the state. These people are accountable to certain covenants as they should be. The state will provide real estate as well as a loan program for all of the winners. The state wants to ensure that each of these possible license owners has success.

The other applicants can be nonprofit organizations who work in the space of helping previously incarcerated people get back on their feet. The scariest thing for any of these organizations is their status as a 501C3 because the Federal Government issues that.

Others want to manage a store or work in the industry. What if their partner is involved with organizations that shun that because cannabis is not Federal law? The whole thing is crazy because this will all be moot in the end.

We should all be asking ourselves why the Federal Government is still holding the 280E taxation over the cannabis industry. Why can’t they figure out how to pass the banking law (banks are not “allowed” to give loans or work with cannabis companies) and, most importantly, pass the legalization of cannabis at a Federal level?

Politics are politics, and they are getting worse, but perhaps the answer is age. 25% of lawmakers are over 70, and this continues to climb. Most of these lawmakers don’t get it. They also don’t get Web 3.0 or the importance of getting behind Cryptocurrencies. All three of these are essential to the future of our country, from taxation to leadership.

This is one of the many reasons that people are losing faith in Government. It is time for the Federal Government to pass laws that allow banking for cannabis, remove it as a status one drug and make the plant legal.