Psychedelic Reform Possibilities in 2022 [FEATURE]

Activists in Denver opened psychedelic floodgates for the United States with their successful psilocybin decriminalization initiative in 2019. Since that time, the trickle of bills and initiatives seeking to undo the criminalization of psychedelics has turned into a torrent.

In 2020, Oregon and Washington, DC broke things open even wider with Oregon's therapeutic psilocybin initiative and DC's entheogenic plant decrim. (Oregon also passed the broader general drug decrim initiative). A number of towns and cities, most notably in California, Massachusetts, and Michigan, have subsequently enacted psychedelic reforms.

This year, psychedelic reform measures are popping up like mushrooms after a rain shower, with serious decriminalization or legalization efforts in several states, and either therapeutic or study efforts (or therapeutic study efforts) in many more. Many, perhaps most, of these bills will not pass this year, but then, legislating controversial topics is seldom a single-year process. Initiatives probably have a better chance of success — provided they can make it to the ballot.

With a big tip of the hat to Ballotpedia and Marijuana Moment, here's is what we've got going in 2022:

California

There are two different paths to psychedelic legalization this year, one via the legislature and one as a potential November ballot initiative.

Senate Bill 519 would legalize the possession and unremunerated sharing of psilocybin (2 grams, or 4 grams of magic mushrooms), psilocin, DMT (2 grams), LSD (0.01 gram), MDMA (4 grams), and mescaline for people 21 and older. The bill passed the Senate last year, but sponsor Sen. Scott Weiner (D-San Francisco) put it on pause, signaling he needed more time to build support in the Assembly.

Regardless of what happens in Sacramento, activists with Decriminalize California have drafted the California Psilocybin Initiative of 2022 , which "decriminalizes under state law the cultivation, manufacture, processing, distribution, transportation, possession, storage, consumption, and retail sale of psilocybin mushrooms, the hallucinogenic chemical compounds contained in them, and edible products and extracts derived from psilocybin mushrooms."

Whether the initiative will qualify for the ballot will be known soon; campaigners have only until March 13 to come up with 623,212 valid voter signatures. As of mid-February, they had not reported gathering 25 percent of the signatures, as is required when that benchmark is reached, so that is not a good sign.

Colorado

New Approach PAC, which supported the Oregon therapeutic psilocybin initiative in 2020, as well as various marijuana legalization initiatives, is supporting a pair of psychedelic reform initiatives, both known as the Natural Medicine Healing Act. The first would legalize the possession, cultivation and an array of entheogenic substances, as well as establish a regulatory model for psychedelics therapy. The other would initially legalize psilocybin and psilocin alone for personal adult use while and allow for their sale and administration in a therapeutic setting.

Meanwhile, activists with Decriminalize Nature Boulder County have filed the Legal Possession and Use of Entheogenic Plants and Fungi initiative, which would allow people 21 and over to possess, cultivate, gift and deliver psilocybin, psilocyn, ibogaine, mescaline and DMT. The initiative would also allow psychedelic services for therapeutic, spiritual, guidance, or harm reduction purposes with or without accepting payment.

Both initiatives will need 124,632 valid voter signatures by August 8 to qualify for the November ballot.

Florida

State Senate Minority Leader Lauren Brook (D) has filed Senate Bill 348, which would require the state to research the medicinal benefits of psychedelic substances such as ketamine, MDMA, and psilocybin. The bill directs the state Health Department to "conduct a study evaluating the therapeutic efficacy of alternative therapies" such as those substances, "in treating mental health and other medical conditions," such as anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, and PTSD. A companion version of the bill, House Bill 193 has been filed in the House. Neither has moved since last fall, though.

Hawaii

A bill to set up a state working group to study the therapeutic effects of psilocybin mushrooms, Senate Bill 3160, won approval in the Senate Health Committee this month and now awaits a Senate floor vote. Companion legislation, House Bill 2400, is awaiting action in the House.

Meanwhile, Senate Bill 738 would decriminalize psilocybin by removing from the state's schedule of controlled substances and requiring the establishment of therapeutic psilocybin treatment centers, which was filed more than a year ago, awaits action in the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Iowa

There are a trio of psilocybin bills that are all technically still alive, although they were filed a year ago and have yet to see action. House File 549 would deschedule psilocybin, but a Public Safety subcommittee recommended indefinite postponement last March, and it remains postponed indefinitely. House File 636 would set up a regime for therapeutic psilocybin, and House File 480 would decriminalize certain psychedelics for use by a patient diagnosed with a terminal illness or a life-threatening disease or condition. Neither of those bills have moved out of committee.

Kansas

House Bill 2465 would decriminalize the possession of less than 100 grams of psilocybin and make possession of more than 100 grams a misdemeanor. The bill would also legalize the home cultivation of psilocybin mushrooms. Introduced last month, the bill is now before the House Committee on Corrections and Juvenile Justice.

Maine

Legislative Document 1582 would enact "the Maine Psilocybin Services Act, which establishes a regulatory framework in order to provide psilocybin products to clients in Maine." Although it is not yet officially dead, it failed to get reported out of the House Health and Human Services Committee earlier this month.

Maryland

A pair of complementary bills, House Bill 1367and Senate Bill 709, would create "the Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Alternative Therapies Fund to support the study of the effectiveness of and improving access to alternative therapies for post-traumatic stress disorder in veterans." While there has been a Senate hearing on its bill, neither bill has moved out of committee yet.

Massachusetts

House Bill 1494would establish an interagency task force to study the public health and social justice implications of legalizing the possession, consumption, transportation, and distribution of naturally cultivated entheogenic plants and fungi. It is currently before the Judiciary Committee.

Michigan

Sen. Jeff Irwin (D) filed Senate Bill 631 last September. It would legalize the possession, cultivation, and delivery of plant- and fungi-derived psychedelics, such as mescaline and psilocybin. The bill would free people from criminal liability except for "receiving money or other valuable consideration for the entheogenic plant or fungus." In other words, no commercial sales, but people can charge a "reasonable fee for counseling, spiritual guidance, or a related service that is provided in conjunction with the use of an entheogenic plant or fungus under the guidance and supervision of an individual providing the service."

Meanwhile, activists with Decriminalize Nature, Decriminalize Nature Michigan, and Students for Sensible Drug Policy earlier this month filed the Michigan Initiative for Community Healing, which would legalize the use and possession of a broad range of natural entheogens and allow for "supervision, guidance, therapeutic, harm reduction, spiritual, counseling, and related supportive services with or without remuneration."

The measure has yet to be approved for signature gathering — a decision on that will come next month — and if and when it is, it will need 340,047 valid voter signatures by May 27 to qualify for the November ballot.

New Hampshire

A bipartisan group of legislators have filed House Bill 1349-FN, which would decriminalize the possession of psilocybin mushrooms. The bill would decriminalize the possession of up to 12 grams of 'shrooms, enough for several psychedelic experiences. The clock is ticking on this one; it must clear Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee by March 10 or it dies.

New York

Assemblyman Pat Burke (D) has filed a bill, Assembly Bill 8569, that would legalize psilocybin mushrooms for therapeutic purposes and create facilities where the mushrooms could be grown and provided to patients. It is a set-up similar to what Oregon voters approved last year. The bill provides a list of qualifying medical conditions but also says psilocybin could be recommended "for any conditions" certified by a practitioner. The Department of Health would be responsible for providing a training course for practitioners and licensing the psilocybin centers.

Meanwhile, Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal (D/WF) has filed Assembly Bill 6065, which decriminalizes psilocybin. That bill has been referred to Assembly Health Committee.

Oklahoma

State Reps. Daniel Pae (R) and Logan Phillips (R) have filed a pair of bills that would promote research into psilocybin's therapeutic potential, and one of them would also decriminalize small-time possession of the drug. The bills are designed to give lawmakers different options to reach similar objectives, but Pae's bill would also decriminalize the possession of up to an ounce and half of psilocybin. Pae's bill, House Bill 3414, has been referred to House Public Health Committee, while Phillips' bill, House Bill 3174, =has been referred to House Rules Committee.

Pennsylvania

Rep. Tracy Pennicuick (R-Montgomery County) filed House Bill 1959, "Providing for research and clinical studies of psilocybin, for duties of Department of Health, for duties of institutional review boards, for duties of authorized psilocybin manufacturers, for duties of approved investigators and for reports" last October. It was referred to the House Health Committee, where it has remained ever since.

Utah

Rep. Brady Brammer (R-Highland) has filed House Bill 167, which would create a Mental Illness Psychotherapy Drug Task Force that would "study and make recommendations on drugs that may assist in treating mental illness." Although not mentioned specifically in the bill, supporters say psilocybin, the psychoactive compound in magic mushrooms, is the drug most likely to be considered by the task force. The bill passed the House last week and now heads for the Senate.

Vermont

Rep. Brian Cins (D/P) filed House Bill 309, "An act relating to decriminalizing certain chemical compounds found in plants and fungi that are commonly used for medicinal, spiritual, religious, or entheogenic purposes" 51 weeks ago. It has sat in the House Judiciary Committee without moving ever since, although it did get a hearing in January.

Virginia

In January, the House Courts of Justice Subcommittee voted to delay consideration of a bill to decriminalize a wide range of psychedelics, House Bill 898, until 2023. The move came even after the bill was amended by its sponsor, Del. Dawn Adams (D), to only apply to medical practitioners and people using psychedelics with a practitioner. The object for the delay is to build support and try again next year. A similar bill in the Senate, Senate Bill 262, remains alive.

Washington

State Senators Jesse Salomon (D) and Liz Lovelett (D) have introduced a bill that would allow people to use psilocybin and psilocin, the psychoactive ingredients in magic mushrooms, with the assistance of a trained and state-licensed psilocybin services administrator. The bill, Senate Bill 5660, is titled the Psilocybin Wellness and Opportunity Act. People would have to go to a licensed service center to partake, unless they suffer certain medical conditions or are unable to travel, in which case they could receive psilocybin at home and meet remotely with a facilitator. The bill got a Senate Health and Long Term Care Committee hearing earlier this month, but remains in committee.

There is also likely to be a ballot initiative to broadly decriminalize drugs in 2022, similar to what neighboring Oregon voters passed in 2020. That effort, which was foiled in 2020 because of the pandemic, is being led by Commit to Change WA.