Pubdate: Sat, 15 Feb 2014 Source: Dallas Morning News (TX) Copyright: 2014 The Associated Press Contact: http://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/send-a-letter/ Website: http://www.dallasnews.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/117 Author: Pete Yost, The Associated Press BANKS GET U.S. GUIDELINES FOR LEGAL MARIJUANA DEALINGS Many Institutions Fear Prosecution Even in States Where It's OK WASHINGTON (AP) - The Obama administration gave banks a road map Friday for conducting transactions with legal marijuana sellers so the new businesses can stash away savings, make payroll and pay taxes like any other enterprise. It's not clear banks will get on board. Guidance issued by the Justice and Treasury departments is the latest step by the federal government toward enabling a legalized marijuana industry to operate in states that approve it. The intent is to make banks feel more comfortable working with marijuana businesses that are licensed and regulated. Others have a keen interest, too, in a regulated financial pipeline for an industry that is just emerging from the underground. Marijuana businesses that can't use banks may have too much cash they can't safely put away, leaving them vulnerable to criminals. And governments that allow marijuana sales want a channel to receive taxes. But a leading financial services trade group expressed misgivings, and others, too, said the guidelines don't go far enough in protecting banks. "After a series of red lights, we expected this guidance to be a yellow one," said Don Childears, president and CEO of the Colorado Bankers Association. "This isn't close to that. At best, this amounts to 'serve these customers at your own risk,' and it emphasizes all of the risks. This light is red." Washington, Colorado Washington and Colorado in 2012 became the first states to approve recreational use of marijuana. A group is hoping to make Alaska the third state in the nation to do so. Currently, processing money from marijuana sales puts federally insured banks at risk of drug racketeering charges, so they've refused to open accounts for marijuana-related businesses. Friday's move was designed to let financial institutions serve such businesses while ensuring that they know their customers' legitimacy and remain obligated to report possible criminal activity, said the Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, or FinCEN. But in response, the American Bankers Association said, "Guidance or regulation doesn't alter the underlying challenge for banks. As it stands, possession or distribution of marijuana violates federal law, and banks that provide support for those activities face the risk of prosecution and assorted sanctions." The group says banks will be comfortable serving marijuana businesses only if federal prohibitions on the drug are changed in law. Denny Eliason, a lobbyist for the Washington Bankers Association, said it will take some time before banks decide whether to take advantage of the guidance. He called it a good first step but said it sets forth a complicated process for the banks to follow - for example, by filing suspicious activity reports designated "marijuana limited" in the case of business that seem to be complying with the rules, and "marijuana priority" for those acting questionably. "They' ll have to have a real awareness of the activities of their customers," he said. Bank by bank State banking regulators in Colorado and Washington appear to believe that mainly small and medium-size banks will be interested in handling financial transactions with legal marijuana stores, not the big ones, a FinCEN official said, speaking only on condition of anonymity to talk about internal deliberations. "This is a decision that each financial institution needs to make on its own," the official said. "We feel quite comfortable that we have acted within the scope of our authority" and therefore don't expect legal challenges to the new procedures. FinCEN writes the rules that U.S. financial institutions must follow to help protect the system from money laundering and the financing of terrorism. The office said it expects financial institutions to perform thorough customer due diligence on marijuana businesses and file reports that will be valuable to law enforcement. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom