Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2015

Floor Speech

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Mr. HECK of Washington. Mr. Chairman, I offer this bipartisan amendment to carry forth an important issue of public safety to provide legally-constituted marijuana businesses access to banking services. To do otherwise is to render them an all-cash sector of the economy, which is fraught with peril.

If you supported the Rohrabacher amendment to the Commerce-Justice and Science Appropriations which passed clearly, then you will support this as well. It brings forth the terms and conditions of the Department of Justice and Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

Yesterday morning, on the very front page of USA Today was an article setting forth the dangers of all-cash businesses in our States that have approved legally marijuana-related businesses. In the words of the Attorney General:

You don't want just huge amounts of cash in these places. They want to be able to use the banking system. It is a public safety component. Huge amounts of cash, substantial amounts of cash just kind of lying around with no place for it to be appropriately deposited is something that worries me, just from a law enforcement perspective.

If you support public safety, if you supported the Rohrabacher amendment to the Commerce, Justice, and Science bill, you will support this amendment as well. In the interest of public safety, you will do this. Because in the words of the Department of Justice, the two most important terms and conditions: keep marijuana out of the hands of children and keep cash out of the hands of gangs and the cartels. To oppose this amendment is to support that, and I know you don't want that.

So, I urge you in the strongest terms to support this amendment, this bipartisan amendment, as was adopted earlier on the Commerce, Justice, and Science Appropriations bill.

Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. HECK of Washington. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

This is a referendum on public safety. It follows the exact intent--but is technically perfected--of the earlier amendment that was offered, and I thank the gentleman from the majority for pointing out its technical flaws. They have been corrected.

It is a referendum on public safety. If you want to render an all-cash sector of the economy in the 23 States that allow for medical marijuana and in the two States that allow for the adult recreational use of marijuana, you will make them unsafe. That is for certain.

I entreat you to pick up yesterday's USA Today and read the excellent article, including the citation of several security experts, about what will happen with a certainty, inevitably, if we do not take this measure.

If you want to keep marijuana out of the hands of children and if you want to keep cash out of the hands of gangs and cartels, you will support this amendment.

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Mr. HECK of Washington. First, let's correct the Record. The earlier vote did not approve the opposite amendment. In fact, the decision, as announced by the Chair, was to affirm the amendment, and then the rollcall was provided and is yet pending.

Secondly, the will of this body has, in fact, been manifested on one occasion, and that was an amendment highly similar to this one, to the Commerce, Justice, and Science Appropriations, and it passed by a clear bipartisan majority in this Chamber.

Lastly--and again, this is about public safety. This is about keeping marijuana out of the hands of children and cash out of the hands of the gangs and the cartels. That is what this amendment is about.

I am frankly stunned to learn that the party whose heritage was in support of states' rights now no longer sees fit to uphold those States who have gone in this direction who, through votes of people and votes of their duly-elected legislatures, have created tightly-controlled markets for this particular substance.

This is not about being in favor or against marijuana consumption. This is about public safety. This is about providing access to banking services for safe environments, safe communities, and I entreat you to support it as you once did before.

Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

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