By Andrew Sheeler | The Sacramento Bee
Unfriendly banks, high taxes and black-market competitors are some of the obstacles that licensed cannabis companies say hold them back as they try to cultivate a new industry in California.
Some California lawmakers want to give them a hand, and they’re considering a set of bills that would in ways great and small fine tune the law governing recreational marijuana.
“We’re all in this for the long haul,” Assemblyman Rob Bonta, D-Alameda, said at a press conference Monday. “It’s incumbent on us to continue to monitor what’s happening and course correct if necessary.”
“Cannabis business owners are operating a legal business and as such, have the same needs as any other business. This is an important step forward by the State of California and I hope that it’s successful and sets the precedent for other states to do the same. It’s time to remove the unfair burdens from the shoulders of cannabis business owners, giving them the right to typical business tax deductions and exemptions and access to banking and other business services.”
