H.R. 10471: Clarifying Law Around Insurance of Marijuana Act

This bill would create a legal safe harbor for insurers that provide insurance services to cannabis-related businesses operating legally under state, local, or tribal law.

What the bill does

• Bars federal agencies from penalizing, discouraging, or restricting an insurer just because it does business with a cannabis-related legitimate business.
• Prevents federal agencies from canceling or limiting an insurer’s policies solely because the insurer covers cannabis-related businesses.
• Prevents agencies from downgrading, canceling, or otherwise taking adverse action against a policyholder solely because that policyholder is involved in a cannabis-related business.
• Extends these protections to business owners, operators, employees, and also to owners of real estate or equipment leased to cannabis-related businesses.
• Protects insurers and their officers, directors, and employees from federal liability solely for providing insurance to cannabis-related businesses in places where such activity is allowed by state, local, or tribal law.
• Also protects insurers from federal liability for reinvesting income earned from that insurance business.

What it does not do

• It does not require insurers to offer coverage to cannabis-related businesses.
• It does not change state insurance regulation.
• It does not override the McCarran-Ferguson Act or the Dodd-Frank Act.

Definitions used by the bill

• Cannabis-related legitimate business includes businesses that cultivate, produce, manufacture, sell, transport, display, dispense, distribute, or purchase cannabis or cannabis products, if they are operating under applicable state, local, or tribal law.
• Insurer is defined by existing federal law.
• Cannabis product includes items like concentrates, edibles, tinctures, infused products, and topicals.

Additional study requirement

The bill would require the Government Accountability Office to study barriers faced by minority-owned and women-owned cannabis-related businesses, including obstacles in licensing and access to financial services. The GAO would then report its findings and recommendations to Congress.

Relevant Companies

None found