DENVER — A judge on Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit that sought federal approval for a credit union aimed at serving Colorado’s marijuana businesses, saying pot is still illegal under federal law.
Fourth Corner Credit Union challenged a decision by the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City to keep the pot bank from accessing the nation’s financial system. The credit union, which was chartered by Colorado in 2014, is not allowed to take deposits or issue credit — leaving many marijuana businesses operating on a cash-only basis and causing concerns over the possibility of robberies.
Colorado voted to legalize recreational marijuana in 2012.
Lawyers for the Federal Reserve argued that giving marijuana businesses access to the nation’s banking system is too risky, saying that despite guidance about pot banking from the Department of the Treasury, marijuana money should not be allowed into the nation’s banking system as long as the drug remains federally outlawed.
U.S. District Judge R. Brooke Jackson dismissed the lawsuit Tuesday because federal law prohibits the drug.