HR 121 — CONGRESS - MARIJUANA POLICY

*LRB10008758MST21474r* HR0121 Enrolled LRB100 08758 MST 21474 r HOUSE RESOLUTION 121 WHEREAS, The State of Illinois traditionally exercises its police powers to reflect local values and needs when determining appropriate law enforcement policies;

and WHEREAS, Illinois, as with many other states across the United States, has acted upon the issueissues of marijuanacannabis decriminalization and uses for medicinal purposes by adopting a variety of policies for regulating the use of marijuana;cannabis;

and WHEREAS, Twenty-eight states and the District of Columbia allow for the medicalmedicinal use of marijuana;cannabis;

and WHEREAS, Eight states have passed legislation to legalize the use of recreational marijuana;cannabis;

and WHEREAS, In the enactment of legislation allowing for the use of marijuanacannabis for medicinal or recreational purposes, states have provided for the regulation and taxation of the use of marijuana;cannabis;

and WHEREAS, MarijuanaCannabis remains a Schedule I Drug under the federal Controlled Substances Act, classifying it among the most dangerous drugs in the Act;

and HR0121 Enrolled -2- LRB100 08758 MST 21474 r WHEREAS, This creates a problem for marijuana-relatedcannabis-related businesses that are legally operating pursuant to State law and makes it more difficult for consumers or businesses who are authorized to grow, sell, or purchase marijuanacannabis products under Statestate law;

and WHEREAS, Many financial institutions have been unwilling to do business with marijuana-relatedcannabis-related businesses because of existing federal law and policies;

and WHEREAS, Many marijuana-relatedcannabis-related businesses rely upon cash transactions, which increaseincreases the risk of robberyvarious crimes and impairimpairs the ability of states to collect taxes;

and WHEREAS, In the interest of promoting efficient business practices, financial institutions should be confident in serving businesses legally operating in the State of Illinois under State law so long as safety and soundness requirements are met;

and WHEREAS, Legislation has been introduced in Congress to provide specific regulatory protection and immunity from federal prosecution for depository institutions providing financial services to marijuana-relatedcannabis-related businesses acting legitimately under applicable state law;

and HR0121 Enrolled -3- LRB100 08758 MST 21474 r WHEREAS, Maintaining a business relationship with financial institutions will allow for greater access to loans, HR0121 -3- LRB100 08758 MST 21474 r as well as debit and credit transactions for both businesses serving the marijuanacannabis industryindustry, their employees, and for consumers fillingpurchasing prescriptions;cannabis legally under state law;

therefore, be it RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDREDTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge Congress to amend federal law to provide immunity from federal prosecution and regulatory protections for financial institutions legally providing services to marijuana-relatedcannabis-related businessesbusinesses, licensees, and consumers pursuant to applicable state law;