Another federal, bipartisan bill has entered the arena to bring insurance access to more cannabis-related businesses, joining several others that cover other aspects of the industry, but it remains to be seen what will actually get passed.

The new bill, called Clarifying Law Around Insurance of Marijuana (CLAIM) Act, H.R. 4074,  is sponsored by Representatives Nydia Velazquez, a New York Democrat, and Steve Strivers, a Republican from Ohio. If passed, it would break down many of the barriers that currently prevent cannabis-related companies from obtaining property, title, and casualty insurance. There has been a growing need for cannabis insurance options, and this bill would go a long way toward making them more available.

The bill bears a striking resemblance to another bill with the same name (aka S. 2201) that was put forth in the Senate by Senators Bob Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat, and Rand Paul, a Kentucky Republican. While it isn’t uncommon to see two companion bills in the House of Representatives and the Senate, there is one distinction that sets the House bill apart: The House bill would require the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to complete a study on the “barriers to marketplace entry, including in the licensing process, and the access to financial services for potential and existing minority-owned and women-owned cannabis-related legitimate businesses.”

After the study is completed, the GAO would need to come back before Congress and submit their findings and any recommendations they may have. As the War on Drugs has disproportionately affected minorities, the study could go a long way toward analyzing the significant barriers and finding solutions that help independent businesses thrive.

“For far too long, minority communities bore the brunt of our country’s backward marijuana policies,” Representative Nydia Velázquez said in a press release announcing the bill. “As we normalize these products and this becomes a business, we must ensure minorities, women and other disadvantaged groups are able to enter this market and profit from this burgeoning industry.”

The inability to get insurance is a major barrier for cannabis industries, as cities and states want licensees to obtain insurance as this new and exciting industry moves forward. By necessity, insurance companies must manage risk and right now there is far too much uncertainty for many companies to be willing to enter the market. There is also worry from cannabis businesses on whether or not their provider will payout a claim, although early experiences with cannabis claims have been promising from those who can get the coverage.

“Without this legislation, insurers will understandably be reticent to insure businesses operating in the cannabis sector,” Representative Nydia Velázquez said in a press release.  “This means a legal cannabis distributor whose product is ruined from a flood or fire could lose all their capital and their livelihood. This bipartisan bill corrects these problems and I’m proud to introduce it.”

If the House bill makes it through the gauntlet of committees, it will need to be reconciled with the Senate version of the bill (or reviewed by the Senate entirely if the companion bill fails). Both have several steps left before they have a possibility of passing, so those in the industry will have to wait and see what happens at the federal level.