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Cannabis in the USA: An illegal tax-paying business

America鈥檚 cannabis industry is worth tens of billions of dollars and it generates tax revenues and jobs. But, it is barred from accessing most financial services.

America鈥檚 cannabis industry is worth tens of billions of dollar and it generates tax revenues and jobs. But it is barred from accessing most financial services. This is because, while legal in an increasing number US states, cannabis remains illegal at a federal level. We hear what it鈥檚 like running a cannabis business from Ken Churchill of the West Coast Cannabis Club in California. Emily Dufton, author of Grass Roots: The Rise and Fall and Rise of Marijuana in America, explains how the US went from "Just Say No" in the 1980s to yes now. And Robert Hoban, a lawyer who specialises in cannabis, explains why two currently empty Georgia Senate seats could determine whether the Biden administration can fulfil its pledge to decriminalise cannabis.

(Picture: purchasing legal marijuana at a dispensary. Credit: Getty Images.)

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18 minutes

Last on

Fri 18 Dec 2020 08:32GMT

Broadcast

  • Fri 18 Dec 2020 08:32GMT

Podcast