While the passing of the SAFE Banking Act in the House is a great victory for everybody, U.S. Congressman Don Young wants to urge everybody who cares about SAFE Banking to call their senators and encourage them to vote yes on the bill as well. In terms of what’s next, Young says that the cannabis industry should come to Congress with proposals for solutions so that Congress can stay informed and get ahead. Young also discusses the three big cannabis bills on the docket: the STATES Act, the MORE Act, and the CARERS Act. Like many of his colleagues, Young believes that cannabis reform should be a states’ rights issue and that the federal government should mostly be uninvolved — regulate at the state level so that the states can collect that tax. When it comes to making progress, Young reminds us: “If you start biting an apple before what you bit on, you’re going to lose. Get this done. Get concentrated on that. You get that signed, then you go after the next one.”
Seth Adler: US Congressman Don Young joins us. Welcome to Cannabis Economy, I'm your host Seth Adler. Download episodes on canneconomy.com, that's two N's in the word "Economy", or wherever you currently get your podcasts. We've got a ton of direct insight over at canneconomy.com, from business science and policy leaders. Go there for that, and listen to this from MedMen, and then US Congressman Don Young. MedMen is the most recognizable cannabis retailer in the US with operations across the country in flagship stores in Los Angeles, Las Vegas and New York. Recently MedMen entered Florida for the first time, the third largest medical cannabis market where the company is licensed for 35 total stores. It's all part of MedMen's impressive footprint, which currently spans 86 licenses, including pending acquisitions. Learn more about how MedMen is creating a safer, happier, and healthier world at medmen.com. We're doing the SAFE Banking Act. Did you notice that it passed?
Don Young: Oh, I noticed it passed. I was very excited because I got 95 votes from my side.
Seth Adler: Well so, yeah there you go. Almost a hundred Republicans, right? 26 cosponsors. 76% of the house voted for the SAFE Banking Act.
Don Young: It was a great victory for everybody.
Seth Adler: Yeah.
Don Young: The right thing to do, and that's a classic example, it was a bipartisan bill and I think the best part about it is that even my side knew that we had to do this. It had to be passed.
Seth Adler: Right.
Don Young: Now our challenge is after we do this and everybody, and I'm encouraging everybody interested in it, is they hit their senators up.
Seth Adler: Hit them up.
Don Young: Hit them up, talk to them, be nice to them.
Seth Adler: Sure.
Don Young: Talk to them. I had the privilege of this last week, I went through three of my cannabis programs.
Seth Adler: Okay.
Don Young: The grower, the processor, and the retailer.
Seth Adler: Up in Alaska?
Don Young: In Alaska.
Seth Adler: Okay.
Don Young: I was extremely pleasantly surprised as to the quality of each one of the units.
Seth Adler: Of the operations.
Don Young: Of the operations, in the producing area, the farming area, mostly all inside. We're finding out that even in Alaska, things grow better if it's in a controlled environment.
Seth Adler: Sure.
Don Young: If we're actually making more marijuana. I didn't know all the plants are, they call them mother plants, are plants that produce the good stuff.
Seth Adler: That's right.
Don Young: They have seeds, eventually they begin it, but they get the good ones that have the right amounts of oil in it. They put sprouts in a little, they cut little, but I don't want you to call it. It's like grafting, they put them in and then they grow and then they keep growing bigger, bigger, bigger. They manage it all the way through, and all that is registered, it's all computerized. You walk into one place, they had 87 plants.
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