After six years of trying, U.S. House Democrats on Thursday advanced legislation to give cannabis businesses access to the national banking system and protect financial institutions from repercussions.

The Secure and Fair Enforcement Banking Act would offer a legal safe harbor for banks and credit unions serving state-approved marijuana-related businesses if they comply with new reporting requirements.

The bill, approved by the House Committee on Financial Services in a 45-15 vote, is a top priority for a marijuana industry largely shut out of mainstream banking and forced to deal with large sums of cash.

“What we've done is draft a piece of legislation that is narrowly confined to the financial services industry so that … businesses that are legitimate in their states can get legitimate banking services — credit cards, payroll, checking accounts, lending,” said U.S. Rep. Ed Perlmutter, D-Colorado, one of the bill's lead authors representing a district where recreational marijuana is legal. “Because we've seen that across the country, huge piles of cash are developed by these businesses and particularly create real public safety hazards.”

Democratic control of the House has provided a friendlier environment for marijuana bills, which in previous Congresses were bottled up by the key Republican chairman.

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California Democrat and committee chair Maxine Waters has expressed support for measures to protect state-regulated marijuana. At her request, Perlmutter added language to his bill Wednesday to require banking regulators to report annually on the availability of banking services to minority- and women-owned cannabis businesses.

“I also consider this bill as part of a holistic approach toward providing criminal justice reform to those who have been harmed by criminalization of marijuana and should not by any means be the only bill the House takes up on the important issue of cannabis reform,” Waters said.

Perlmutter said he had 151 co-sponsors for his legislation, including some Republicans. Many Republicans on the committee, however, opposed the bill and tried unsuccessfully during Wednesday's marathon markup session to attach hostile amendments.

“We need to ensure that we're doing our due diligence before proceeding,” said North Carolina's Patrick McHenry, the ranking Republican member of the committee. “One committee hearing is not enough to fully understand the consequences of this bill. It is a massive change in federal policy.”

At the end of 2018, 551 banks and credit unions  reported serving marijuana-related businesses, according to the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

“The SAFE Banking Act would go a long way toward improving safety, transparency, access and justice in the cannabis industry,” said Aaron Smith, executive director of the National Cannabis Industry Association. “The amendments agreed upon in committee should solidify the already overwhelming support for this legislation in the House. The cannabis and financial services industries have been waiting for clarification and protection for far too long, and we are confident the House would approve this bill if allowed to vote on it without further delay.”

The Drug Enforcement Administration lists marijuana in its mostly restrictive category along with heroin, LSD, ecstasy and others, leaving banks exposed to penalties for dealing with marijuana businesses that are legal under state laws.