Breaking News:Dangerous Delays: What Washington State (Re)Teaches Us About Cash and Cannabis Store Robberies [REPORT]

Ibogaine

RSS Feed for this category

OH to Vote on Marijuana Legalization in November, CA Natural Psychedelic Bill Advances, More... (8/17/23)

Oregon's governor has vetoed a bill that would have moved toward a state bank to serve marijuana businesses, a coalition of public health and drug reform groups calls out the way some of the opioid settlement money is being spent, and more.

Marijuana Policy

Ohio Will Vote on Marijuana Legalization in November. The Secretary of State's Office announced Wednesday that the Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol had gathered sufficient valid voter signatures to qualify its marijuana legalization initiative for the November ballot. The group had originally come up short on signatures but used a 10-day window to find more signatures to go over the top.

The proposal would legalize the possession of up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana or 15 grams of extract by adults. It would also legalize the home cultivation of up to 12 plants. It also envisages a taxed and regulated market in legal marijuana, with retail pot sales taxed at 10 percent.

Nearly six in 10 state voters support marijuana legalization. If it passes in November, Ohio will become the 24th state to free the weed.

Oregon Governor Vetoes Bill to Create State Bank for Marijuana Businesses. Gov. Tina Kotek (D) has vetoed House Bill 2673, which would have created a State Bank Public Task Force as the first step in an effort to create a state-owned bank to help the state's legal marijuana industry. As in other states, the industry is blocked from accessing most financial institutions because marijuana remains illegal under federal law.

The bill would have directed the task force to make recommendations regarding the establishment of a state bank and directed the task force to investigate the provision of financial services for marijuana businesses.

In her veto message, Kotek wrote only that: "While the Governor supports exploring the creation of a state bank, this bill has several logistical challenges, including directing the Oregon Business Development Department (OBDD), which already manages over 80 programs, to manage a new task force, establish an RFP process, and finalize a substantive report on an abbreviated timeline."

Drug Policy

Organizations Oppose "Problematic" Use of Opioid Settlement Money, Want "Evidence-Based" Solutions. A coalition of more than 130 public health and reform groups is charging that the ways some states are using funds from massive settlements with opioid manufacturers and distributors are "problematic" and is demanding that states use the settlement funds for "evidence-based solutions."

The coalition, which includes the Drug Policy Alliance and AIDS United, wants the funds to be used for easing access to all FDA-approved medications for addiction treatment (methadone, buprenorphine) and the whole panoply of harm reduction measures, including safe injection sites. They also call for expanding housing, outreach, and wraparound services for current drug users and people with drug convictions, and supporting second-chance employment opportunities, recovery-to-work programs, and expungement of criminal records.

"Secured through the suffering of people who use drugs and their loved ones, these funds should be used to help individuals directly impacted by the failed 'War on Drugs,'" according to a brief from the organizations. "Sadly, in many places, people are not seeing opioid settlement dollars put toward things that would actually improve their lives."

Based on the drug companies' role in the opioid addiction crisis of the past quarter-century, the settlements are estimated to amount to at least $50 billion over the next 18 years and require recipients to spend at least 85 percent of the funds to "abate the opioid epidemic." But the coalition points to a program in Louisian where 20 percent of the funding is going to sheriffs, one in Wyoming that is buying new police cruisers, and one in New York that is paying overtime for narcs as evidence that the terms of the settlement are not always being followed.

Psychedelics

California Natural Psychedelic Legalization Bill One Step Closer to Final Assembly Committee Vote. A bill that would legalize the possession and facilitated use of certain natural psychedelics is one step closer to a final Assembly committee vote after clearing a procedural hurdle Wednesday. The bill, Senate Bill 58, has already passed the upper house.

The Assembly Appropriations Committee advanced the measure to its suspense file, meaning it is set for final action to see whether it advances to the floor. That decision should come by September 1.

The bill would legalize the "possession, preparation, obtaining, transfer, as specified, or transportation of" specific amounts of psilocybin, psilocyn, DMT, ibogaine and mescaline for personal or facilitated use. The bill would legalize up to two grams of DMT, psilocybin, and psilocyn, as well as up to four ounces of "a plant or fungi containing psilocybin or psilocyn. It would also legalize the possession of up to 15 grams of ibogaine.

CA Initiative Would Have State Fund Psychedelic Research, Fentanyl Bills Pass Senate, More... (7/31/23)

A Georgia prosecutor's bid to seize a landlord's rural trailer beause a tenant got caught with meth gets thrown out of court, Colombia's president proposes buying up the coca crop, and more.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro proposes buying up the coca crop and turning it into fertilizer. (Creative Commons)
Opiates and Opioids

Two Fentanyl Bills Pass Senate as Part of Defense Spending Bill. The Senate approved the must-pass National Defense Authorization Act (S.2226) late last week. Because of its must-pass nature, the bill was loaded with other measures sponsors sought to get through the Congress, including a pair of fentanyl-related bills.

Sponsored by Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL), the Eradicating Narcotic Drugs and Formulating Effective New Tools to Address National Yearly Losses of Life (END FENTANYL) Act (S.206) would require the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to regularly update its drug interdiction guidance. Currently, many CBP policies that outline drug interdiction practices are outdated and do not provide guidance on how to handle drugs such as fentanyl. Sponsored by Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), the Fentanyl Eradication and Narcotics Deterrence (FEND) Off Fentanyl Act, which would require the President to sanction drug rings involved in international drug trafficking, including suppliers in China and cartels from Mexico.

Psychedelics

California Initiative Would Fund Psychedelic Research to Tune of $5 Billion. A group calling itself TREAT California has filed a proposed initiative for the 2024 ballot that would allocate $5 billion for a new state agency that would fund and promote psychedelic research with an eye toward accelerating the progress toward federal legalization of certain psychedelics, such as psilocybin and ibogaine.

The campaign is not led by magic mushroom fans but by seasoned initiative campaigners. They want to create an agency they are calling the Treatment, Research, Education, Access and Therapies (TREAT) Institute to identify opportunities for advancing science into the therapeutic potential of psychedelics to address serious mental health conditions like depression and addiction.

"The TREAT Institute will not be a typical government agency; it will be an innovative, effective, and lean organization that will provide a consistent, sustainable funding source," the text of the proposed constitutional amendment says. "TREAT California is not a direct decriminalization or legalization effort; and it is not an initiative driven by an elected official," it continues. "Rather, it is a path for citizens to authorize legislative change."

Meanwhile, another initiative campaign already underway seeks to put psilocybin legalization on the 2024 ballot. That campaign recently got approval from the state to begin signature gathering.

Asset Forfeiture

Georgia Prosecutor's Bid to Seize Landlord's Property over Tenant's Drug Possession Rejected. An effort by the Ogeechee Circuit District Attorney's Office to seize the property of a landlord because of her tenant's arrest for drugs has gone up in flames. The tenant of a trailer and utility shed on a small rural property had been arrested on methamphetamine possession charges in January but has never been indicted or even had her case appear before a grand jury.

But prosecutors moved to seize the property through civil asset forfeiture even though the woman arrested was not the property owner. District Attorney Daphne Totten and ADA Barclay Black argued in the filing that the property is 'contraband and subject to forfeiture' because the property "was found in close proximity to the controlled substance, namely methamphetamine" and "was possessed, used, or available for use to facilitate a violation of the Georgia Controlled Substances Act."

The landlord responded that she was not privy to the criminal conduct, did not consent to the criminal conduct, did not know of the criminal conduct, could not have reasonably known that criminal conduct was going to occur, and thus the property should not be forfeited. The judge in the case agreed.

"No evidence was adduced at trial that Walker was privy to Keaveny's criminal conduct, consented to or had any knowledge of criminal conduct, had any reason to believe it would or was occurring, or derived any financial benefit from the conduct," Judge Roland Thompson wrote, dismissing the seizure request.

International

Colombia President Proposes Buying up Coca Crop to Use for Industrial Purposes. With the country's rural coca economy in crisis because of years of overproduction, President Gustavo Petro has proposed buying up the crop and using it to make fertilizer. He also called for strategies to boost infrastructure development for the project.

"And that is done with research and technology and the form has already been invented. The Government proposes at the national level in the regions with the highest production of coca leaf used in another way, to set up factories to buy that coca leaf and turn it into carbonless fertilizer, decarbonized fertilizer, or if we want another word, 'biofertilizers,' Petro said. "So, I propose to SENA [the National Training Institute] to see if with the Government we can put these industrial complexes of cooperatives, indigenous peoples and neighbors, in order to use the coca leaf in a different way, which is to produce fertilizer for food in Colombia, zero carbon. That is, in the conditions that are needed in the 21st Century," he added.

CA Natural Psychedelic Bill Heads for Senate Floor Vote, German Legal Weed Plan, More... (5/2/23)

An Ohio signature-gathering campaign to put marijuana legalization on the November ballot is about to get underway, Wisconsin Republicans kill the governor's marijuana legalization proposal and a whole bunch more, and more.

The DEA is rolling back a pandemic-era rule that eased access to buprenorphine, and doctors and advocates are worried.
Marijuana Policy

Ohio Activists Ready for Marijuana Legalization Initiative Campaign. The legislature has until tomorrow to act on a petition to legalize marijuana. It is not expected to do so, clearing the way for the Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol to conduct a signature gathering campaign to put its marijuana legalization initiative on the November ballot. A successful initial round of signature gathering put the issue before the legislature, and the legislature's failure to approve it gives proponents one more chance to take the issue directly to the voters. The campaign will have until July 5 to come up with 124,000 valid voter signatures from at least half of the state's counties to qualify for the November ballot. The initiative would legalize and regulate marijuana commerce, allow for the home cultivation of six plants per adult or 12 per residence, and impose a 10 percent retail sales tax.

Wisconsin Republicans Kill Marijuana Legalization Amid Mass Slaughter of Democratic Governor's Budget Proposals. The legislature's Republican-controlled budget committee on Tuesday killed off more than 500 budget proposals from Gov. Tony Evers (D), including marijuana legalization, with a single vote Tuesday. The state has a $7 billion budget surplus, but the Republicans refused to allow it to be used for renovations to the Milwaukee Brewers' stadium, a paid family leave program, a 10 percent income tax cut targeting middle- and low-income earners, spending $270 million to add more mental health providers in schools, or to freeze enrollment in the state's private school voucher program, let alone marijuana legalization.

"These aren't fringe ideas, controversial concepts, or Republican or Democratic priorities -- they're about doing the right thing," Evers said as he listed more than a dozen items being killed. "With a historic surplus comes historic responsibility, and today, when we can afford to do more, this vote is foolish and a wasted opportunity."

Opiates and Opioids

DEA's Proposed Rollback of Pandemic-Era Loosening of Restrictions on Buprenorphine Has Doctors, Advocates Worried. With the pandemic public health emergency set to end in 10 days, doctors and advocates worry that a DEA proposal to roll back a pandemic policy allowing people taking the opioid substitute medication buprenorphine to get it prescribed remotely will harm people recovering from addiction. More than a million Americans use bupe to stop cravings for opiates and block withdrawal symptoms, and since 2020, the federal government has allowed them to have it prescribed via telehealth. The DEA wants to reimpose a requirement that an in-person visit first take place before allowing re-prescribing via telehealth. DEA has received more than 2,900 public comments on the proposed rule, and says it will consider them before it releases final rules after the public health emergency ends next week.

Psychedelics

California Natural Psychedelic Legalization Bill Heads for Senate Floor Vote. A bill that would legalize the possession of small amounts of natural psychedelics, Senate Bill 58, is now headed for a Senate floor vote after clearing the Senate Appropriations Committee without a hearing. The chairman of the committee invoked a rule allowing him to send it directly to the floor because it would have a negligible fiscal impact. The bill was earlier approved by the Senate Public Safety Committee. The bill would legalize the "possession, preparation, obtaining, transfer as specified, or transportation of" personal use amounts of psilocybin, psilocin, DMT, ibogaine, and mescaline, but not synthetics such as LSD or MDMA. A similar bill passed the Senate last session, only to be pulled by its sponsor, Sen. Scott Weiner (D-San Francisco) after being watered down in the Assembly.

International

German Officials Circulate Draft Bill for First Part of Marijuana Legalization Plan. German Health Minister Karl Lauterbach has distributed a draft bill to legalize marijuana possession, cultivation, and social clubs to cabinet officials. Once the cabinet weight in, the government will finalize the bill and send it to lawmakers. Under the proposal, adults could possess up to 25 grams via the social clubs and adults over 21 could purchase up to 50 grams a month. People 18 to 21 would be limited to 30 grams per month. People would also be allowed to grow up to three plants for personal use. The social clubs would not be allowed to offer on-site consumption but could distribute up to seven seeds or five clones per month to each member for home cultivation. Plans for a national legal commercial market for marijuana have been scaled back in the face of concerns from the European Union, but it is expected that a pilot program to allow marijuana sales in select jurisdictions will be a second phase of legalization.

China Rebukes US on Fentanyl Crisis, Cleveland Mayor Will Seal Thousands of Cannabis Conviction Records, More... (4/7/23)

Michigan's former GOP House Speaker pleads guilty to marijuana bribery, a natural psychedelic legalization bill is filed in Uruguay, and more.

enough fentanyl to kill you (DEA)
Marijuana Policy

Indiana Democrat Forces Marijuana Legalization Vote: GOP Lawmakers Defeat It. After years of being unable to get the Republican-dominated state legislature to consider marijuana legalization, one Democratic lawmaker came up with a creative way to get the issue heard. Rep. Justin Moed filed an amendment to Senate Bill 20, which addresses rules for businesses that sell alcohol and hemp products, that would strike language defining hemp as cannabis containing no more than 0.3 percent THC. By removing that language, the bill would have effectively legalized marijuana, with the regulations for hemp applying to any cannabis product. That amendment was defeated, but not before six Republican representatives joined Democrats in supporting it, demonstrating a hint of bipartisan support for legalization.

Former Michigan GOP House Speaker Pleads Guilty to Taking Bribes from Marijuana Company. Former Republican House Speaker Rick Johnson was one of four people who pleaded guilty Wednesday to bribery in a case where a medical marijuana company seeking a license paid him more than $110,000 to ensure it got its license. The other three defendants were the owner of the company and two lobbyists working with yet another company. Johnson, who left the speakership in 2004, was chairman of the state marijuana licensing board at the time the scheme occurred.

Cleveland Mayor Plans to Expunge Thousands of Marijuana Arrest, Conviction Records. Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb (D) announced Tuesday that the city will move forward with sealing thousands of marijuana records. The move comes after a state law allowing municipalities to process mass relief took effect. The mayor said there would be about 4,000 marijuana expungements for Cleveland citizens. Mayor Bibb sought to implement a mass marijuana clemency last year, only to be told by state officials that local officials did not have that authority. So he then worked with legislators to pass that state bill.

Foreign Policy

China Blames US for American Fentanyl Problem; Supports Mexico Against GOP Threats. In response to a letter from Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador seeking Chinese help in quelling the illicit fentanyl trade, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson placed the blame for the fentanyl crisis squarely on the US. "The root cause of the overdose lies in the US itself. The problem is completely 'made in USA, '"the foreign ministry's Mao Ning said at a press briefing Thursday. "The US needs to face up to its own problems, take more substantial measures to strengthen domestic regulation and reduce demand. It cannot relapse into the illness of 'letting others take the pill when it is sick,' she added.

In his letter, Lopez Obrador falsely claimed that the drug is produced in China and only transits through Mexico, but US officials and independent observers say precursor chemicals are sent from China to Mexico, where the fentanyl is then produced in underground laboratories. And that gave China an opening to deny a role in the crisis.

"There is no such thing as illegal trafficking of fentanyl between China and Mexico," Mao said. "We two countries have a smooth channel of counternarcotics cooperation, and the competent authorities of the two countries maintain sound communication. China has not been notified by Mexico on the seizure of scheduled fentanyl precursors from China," she added.

Mao rebuked the US for threats by GOP lawmakers to unleash military force against Mexican cartels in Mexico, but also called on Mexico to step up its anti-drug efforts. "China firmly supports Mexico in defending independence and autonomy and opposing foreign interference and calls on the elevant country to stop hegemonic practices against Mexico. At the same time, we hope the Mexican side will also take stronger counternarcotics actions," Mao said.

International

Uruguay Natural Psychedelic Legalization Bill Filed. Led by Sen. Juan Sartori, the National Party is getting behind a bill that would legalize natural psychedelics for therapeutic use under a psychiatrist's supervisions. The substances that would be legalized include psilocybin, psilocin, ibogaine, and DMT. The National Party, a center-right formation, is the current governing party in Uruguay.

WA Bill Would Recriminalize Drug Possession, MA Natural Psychedelics Decrim Bill Filed, More... (1/24/23)

Hawaii is getting on the fentanyl test strip decriminalization bandwagon, an Arizona bill would set aside taxpayer funds to study the therapeutic potential of psilocybin, and more.

Massachusetts is the latest state to see a bill filed to decriminalize "natural entheogens." (Creative Commons)
Psychedelics

Arizona Magic Mushroom Research Bill Filed. A bipartisan bill to fund research into the potential benefits of psilocybin-containing magic mushrooms has been introduced in the House. House Bill 2486 would provide $30 million to study how the mushrooms could help with conditions such as PTSD, depression, and anxiety. The measure would also prioritize using veterans, first responders, and frontline healthcare workers as research subjects.

Massachusetts Bills to Decriminalize Natural Psychedelics Filed. Identical bills to decriminalize the possession of natural psychedelics such as ayahuasca, ibogaine, magic mushrooms, and mescaline (but not peyote) have been filed in the House and Senate. The measure, known as An Act Relative to Plant Medicine, is House Bill 1450 and Senate Bill 949. The state-level bills come after several cities in the state, including Cambridge and Somerville, voted to decriminalize magic mushrooms and other natural psychedelics. Under the bills, "The possession, ingestion, obtaining, growing, giving away without financial gain to natural persons 18 years of age or older, and transportation of no more than two grams of psilocybin, psilocyn, dimethyltryptamine, ibogaine, and mescaline," would be legalized.

Harm Reduction

Hawaii Bill to Legalize Fentanyl Test Strips Filed. The Hawaii Island Fentanyl Task Force and state Sen. Joy San Buenaventura (D) have partnered to file Senate Bill 671, which would legalize fentanyl test strips. The test strips are currently classified as drug paraphernalia, and this bill would redefine drug paraphernalia to exclude them. Similar bills have been filed in the House.

Sentencing

Washington State Bill Would Recriminalize Drug Possession. After the state Supreme Court threw out the state's felony drug possession law in 2021 because it did not require that someone knowingly possessed an illicit drug, the legislature last year passed interim legislation making drug possession a misdemeanor. But that legislation is only valid until July. After that, if the legislature fails to come up with a permanent solution, drug possession will no longer be a crime in the state. So now, Rep Jacqueline Maycumber (R) has filed House Bill 1415, which would permanently make drug possession a misdemeanor. Maycumber says criminalizing drug possession is desirable because being arrested by the police forces people who "need help" by forcing them into drug court, a therapeutic court, or some kind of drug treatment. The bill is currently before the House Community Safety, Justice, and Reentry Committee.

Eleven States Where Psychedelic Reform Bills Are on the Agenda This Year [FEATURE]

This year's state legislative season is just beginning, and there is already evidence that the psychedelic renaissance now underway is reaching into statehouses across the land. In at least eleven states, reform bills ranging from therapeutic psilocybin to the decriminalization of natural psychedelics have already been filed, and more states are likely to join the list as the year goes on.

What started with a successful local psilocybin decriminalization initiative in Denver in 2019 has now spread to a number of cities, including Oakland and Santa Cruz, California; Cambridge, Somerville, and Northampton, Massachusetts; Seattle; and Washington, DC. At the state level, Oregon led the way with the 2020 passage of Measure 109, which both decriminalized psilocybin and created a framework for its therapeutic administration, and Measure 110, which decriminalized the possession of all drugs, including psychedelics. And in November, Colorado voters passed Measure 122, which decriminalizes natural psychedelics and creates a framework for psilocybin "healing centers."

Here (with a tip of the hat to Marijuana Moment) is what could be coming this year:

California

Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) has filed Senate Bill 58, which would legalize the possession of small amounts of DMT, ibogaine, mescaline, psilocybin, and psilocyn, but not synthetic psychedelics such as LSD and MDMA. A previous version of the bill included those synthetic psychedelics. That bill passed the Senate only to die at the last minute in the Assembly.

Colorado

After voters approved the legalization of natural psychedelics and the creation of psilocybin "healing centers," Gov. Jared Polis (D) is calling for the legislature to pass enabling legislation "to set it up in a way that prevents any negative consequences and honors the will of the voters." It is unclear what Polis is seeking, but he has previously said he was "excited" about the reforms and called psychedelics a "promising" treatment possibility for some mental health conditions.

Connecticut

Rep. David Michel (D) has filed House Bill 5012, "[t]o allow the use of psilocybin for medicinal and therapeutic purposes, including, but not limited to, the provision of physical, mental or behavioral health care." That bill has been referred to the joint Public Health Committee. Michel told Marijuana Moment this week that he will also cosponsor a psychedelic decrim bill with Rep. Josh Elliott (D).

Illinois

Rep. La Shawn Ford (D) has filed House Bill 1, the Compassionate Use and Research of Entheogens (CURE) Act, which would remove psilocybin from the state's list of controlled substances, effectively legalizing it. The measure would also allow expungement of certain psilocybin-related convictions and create an advisory board for psilocybin therapeutic services.

Missouri

Rep. Tony Lovasco (R) plans to file a revised psychedelics bill after a broader psychedelic reform bill he filed last year died in the House Health and Mental Health Policy Committee. The new version will be a narrowly tailored bill to allow people with serious mental health conditions therapeutic access to psilocybin.

Minnesota

Rep. Andy Smith (D) has announced that he is "currently working on a bill forming a psychedelic medicine task force so Minnesotans can have access to these life affirming treatments. For decades scientific research into the positive effects of psychedelic medicine has been muzzled by the 'war on drugs,' but that is [starting] to change," he said. The bill has not yet been filed and the text is not yet available.

Montana.

Two bills are currently being drafted by legislative staff at the request of members. LC 1208, requested by Sen. Jill Cohenour (D)would "[l]egalize psilocybin use for PTSD/mental health treatment," while LC 2311, requested by Rep. George Nikolakakos (R) would more incrementally mandate an interim study on the use of psilocybin for the treatment of mental illness.

New Jersey

Last year, Senate President Nicholas Scutari (D) filed Senate Bill 2934, which would legalize the possession, home cultivation, and gifting of psilocybin mushrooms by people 21 and over, as well as setting a system of licensed psilocybin services in supervised settings. That bill has been carried over into the current session and now has a companion version, Assembly Bill 4911, in the Assembly filed by three key lawmakers, including Judiciary Committee Chairman Raj Mukherji (D) and Health Committee Chairman Herb Conaway (D).

New York

Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal (D) has pre-filed Assembly Bill 00114, which would legalize the "possession, use, cultivation, production, creation, analysis, gifting, exchange, or sharing by or between natural persons of twenty-one years of age or older of a natural plant or fungus-based hallucinogen." That would include DMT, ibogaine, mescaline, psilocybin, and psilocyn. The bill would also allow people to use such substances in religious ceremonies or engage in psychedelic services "with or without remuneration."

Oregon

State voters already approved both therapeutic psilocybin and broader drug decriminalization, but legislators have filed a pair of bills aimed at adjusting the psilocybin services program. Senate Bill 303, filed by Sen. Elizabeth Steiner (D), would mandate that psilocybin businesses and therapists collect and report data such as average psilocybin doses and demographics of their client base. Senate Bill 302, filed by Sen. Kim Thatcher (R), would mandate that psilocybin business applicants provide certain information about ownership and location of their operations.

Virginia

Last year, Del. Dawn Adams (D) filed House Bill 898, which would decriminalize a broad array of psychedelics, but the House bumped it to 2023. It's now 2023, and that bill is still alive. Adams has this year also filed House Bill 1315, which would legalize psilocybin possession for people who have an "order" from a health care professional to treat "refractory depression or post-traumatic stress disorder or to ameliorate end-of-life anxiety." The bill would also reduce the penalty for non-medical possession of psilocybin to a Class 2 misdemeanor punishable by no more than 30 days in jail. Meanwhile Sen. Ghazala Hashmi (D) has pre-filed Senate Bill 932, which would down-schedule psilocybin from Schedule I to Schedule III and create a Virginia Psilocybin Advisory Board to "develop a long-term strategic plan for establishing therapeutic access to psilocybin services and monitor and study federal laws, regulations, and policies regarding psilocybin."

And this is only January.

MD Pot Decrim Now in Effect, CO Natural Psychedelic Decrim Now in Effect, More... (1/3/23)

The Justice Department is suing a major pharmaceutical distributor over its role in the opioid crisis, a Virgin Islands marijuana legalization bill goes to the governor, and more.

Magic mushrooms and other natural psychedelics are now decriminalized in Colorado. (Creative Commons)
Marijuana Policy

Maryland Marijuana Possession No Longer a Crime. With the advent of the new year, possession of up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana is no longer a crime in the state. People who possess up to 1.5 ounces of marijuana, however, face a maximum $100 fine, while those caught with up to 2.5 ounces face a $250 fine. The reduced penalties are the results of voters approving a referendum in November that directs the legislature to create rules for legal adult sales. That referendum also triggered the implementation of a bill decriminalizing pot possession, which is what went into effect on January 1.

US Virgin Islands Marijuana Legalization Bill Goes to Governor. The US territory's Senate last Friday approved a marijuana legalization bill on a an 11-1 vote, as well as passing separate expungement legislation. The bill has already passed the House. Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. (D), who has repeatedly called on lawmakers to pass such a bill, is expected to sign both bills into law.

Opiates and Opioids

Justice Department Sues Pharmaceutical Distributor for More Than $1 Billion for Role in Opioid Epidemic. The Justice Department last Thursday filed a lawsuit in federal court in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania against pharmaceutical distributor AmerisourceBergen, which Justice alleges "fueled" the country's opioid epidemic. The complaint claims the company, one of the country's largest drug distributors, failed to fulfill its legal obligation to report suspicious orders or to report suspicious customer behavior to the DEA. The complaint also alleges that AmerisourceBergen constantly violated the Controlled Substances Act by failing to follow the proper steps for distributing opioids under the Act. The DOJ filed the complaint in civil court and seeks over $1 billion in damages.

Psychedelics

Colorado Psychedelics Decriminalization Takes Effect. Natural psychedelics including psilocybin (magic mushrooms) are now decriminalized after Gov. Jared Polis (D) signed a proclamation that the voter-approved initiative that decriminalized them had received a majority of votes in the November election. "Coloradans voted last November and participated in our democracy," Polis said in a statement from the governor's office. "Officially validating the results of the citizen and referred initiatives is the next formal step in our work to follow the will of the voters and implement these voter-approved measures." The measure creates a state-regulated system for therapeutic access to natural psychedelics and it decriminalizes the possession, cultivation, and sharing of the naturally occurring psychedelic drugs.

New York Lawmakers File Bill to Legalize Natural Psychedelics. Assembly members Linda Rosenthal (D), Jo Anne Simon (D) and Karines Reyes(D) have filed a bill, A00114, that would legalize the use and possession of a number of natural plant- or fungi-based psychedelics, including DMT, ibogaine, mescaline, psilocybin and psilocyn, recategorize them and eliminate their status as prohibited substances. The bill would: "Legalize adult possession and use of certain natural plant or fungus-based hallucinogens; Grant certain protections for individuals lawfully using such hallucinogens; Remove such hallucinogens from the list of Schedule I controlled substances; Make related provisions."

International

Mexico Prison Assault Leaves 14 Dead, 24 Escaped Prisoners. Presumed cartel gunmen in armored vehicles attacked a prison in Ciudad Juarez Sunday morning, opening fire on guards and other security personnel and leaving 10 guards and four prisoners dead. Another 24 prisoners managed to escape during the mayhem. This same prison also saw violence erupt last August where Mexican army troops had to intervene in a clash between prisoners from the rival Juarez and Sinaloa cartels that led to a riot and shootout with a death toll of 11 people.

San Francisco Deprioritizes Natural Psychedelics, UK Blocks Bermuda Pot Legalization, More... (9/8/22)

Prisoners and advocacy groups call on the Bureau of Prisons to clean up its act, Colombia's new president has some words for the US, and more.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro continues to push against the war on drugs. (Creative Commons)
Psychedelics

San Francisco Effectively Decriminalizes Natural Psychedelics. The city's Boad of Supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday night to approve a resolution that effectively decriminalizes natural psychedelics. The resolution includes the "full spectrum of plants, fungi, and natural materials that can inspire personal and spiritual well-being," and includes ayahuasca, DMT, ibogaine, mescaline, psilocybin. The resolution also allows for the "planting, cultivating, purchasing, transporting, distributing, engaging in practices with" those substances and provides no limits on quantities that may be possessed. The resolution effectively decriminalizes these substances by designating them the lowest law enforcement priority, but they remain illegal under state and federal law. San Francisco now joins Arcata, Oakland, and Santa Cruz among California cities that have embraced such measures. A dozen other citizens around the country have, too.

Incarceration

Incarcerated People and Advocacy Organizations Urge Reform of US Bureau of Prisons. In a letter Tuesday to federal Bureau of Prisons Director Colette Peters, current and former federal prisoners and an array of sentencing, drug policy, and other advocacy groups called on her to "bring the Bureau into compliance with federal law and to lead the Bureau toward a more humane future grounded in transparency and accountability." The letter cited a number of issues and concerns, including unsafe and inhumane prisons, the need for the Bureau to use its power to seek compassionate release, the need for the Bureau to comply with the First Step Act (there are chronic delays in releasing people who qualify), and the pervasiveness of abuse, corruption, and misconduct. In addition to individual signers, the letter was endorsed by the ACLU, Citizens United for the Rehabilitation of Errants (CURE), the Drug Policy Alliance, Fair and Just Prosecution, Federal Public and Community Defenders, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, National Council of Churches, and the Sentencing Project, which organized the campaign.

Foreign Policy

Colombian President Warns US Drug War Has Failed, Change Must Come. President Gustavo Petro warned the US on Wednesday the he believes the US-led war on drugs in his country is a failure and called for substantial changes in drug policy. The statement came after he met with the commander of the United States Southern Command, General Laura Richardson.  "We were now talking at length with General Laura Richardson … about the failure of the anti-drug policy. I think it should be called without fear: the policy that (Richard) Nixon had in the time It was called the War on Drugs, has failed here," said Petro from the presidential palace. "It is our duty before the United States, but also before the world, to not only say this, but to propose alternatives that will not kill more than a million Latin Americans."

Colombia is the world's largest coca and cocaine producer, and Petro said that his own country is "the biggest culprit" because rural poverty makes drug cultivation and trafficking an attractive livelihood. Petro has moved to restrict the aerial spraying of herbicides and limited the resort to forced eradication of coca crops, promoting voluntary crop substitution instead. He is also proposing changes in the extradition treaty between Colombia and the US to allow those who cooperate with Colombia to avoid extradition to the US.

International

United Kingdom Blocks Bermuda from Legalizing Marijuana. In a rare move, the UK's Governor for Bermuda, who, as the queen's representative typically provides pro forma assent to the Bermudan government's actions, has intervened to block marijuana legalization in the British Overseas Territory. Even as incoming British Prime Minister Liz Truss was vowing to "stand up for freedom and democracy around the world," her government was directing the governor to block the marijuana legalization bill. "I have now received an instruction, issued to me on Her Majesty’s behalf, not to Assent to the Bill as drafted," the governor said. "The Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs concluded that the Bill, as currently drafted, is not consistent with obligations held by the UK and Bermuda"under international anti-drugs conventions dating back to 1961. Liz Truss was foreign secretary until Tuesday when she became prime minister. In a statement, the Bermudian government said the move was "disappointing, but not surprising, given the confines of our constitutional relationship with the UK government and their archaic interpretation of the narcotic conventions. The Bermudian government said it would continue to move forward on marijuana legalization, which could put the country on a collision course with the UK. "The people of Bermuda have democratically expressed their desire for a regulated cannabis licensing regime, following the strong endorsement at the ballot box and an extensive public consultation process. The Government of Bermuda intends to continue to advance this initiative, within the full scope of its constitutional powers, in keeping with our 2020 general election platform commitment." Bermudian Premier David Burt has not commented on this move, but warned earlier that: "If Her Majesty’s representative in Bermuda does not give assent to something that has been passed lawfully and legally under this local government, this will destroy the relationship we had with the United Kingdom."

Colorado Voters Can Embrace Psychedelic Reform in November [FEATURE]

Beginning with the successful 2019 Denver municipal initiative that made possession of psilocybin mushrooms the lowest law enforcement priority, Colorado has been on the cutting edge of the psychedelic reform movement. This November, the state is poised to maintain that vanguard status by decriminalizing some psychedelics -- the natural ones.

That is because Natural Health Colorado has managed to get the Natural Medicine Health Act (Initiative 58) on the ballot. The measure has three main planks:

  1. It would decriminalize the personal use, possession, and cultivation by people 21 and over of dimethyltryptamine (DMT), ibogaine, mescaline (not derived from peyote), psilocybin, and psilocyn, as well as providing for the sealing of conviction records of people who have completed sentences for the use or possession of those substances. The measure sets no personal possession limits.
  2. It would create a "natural medicine services" program for the therapeutic administration of the specified psychedelics and create a rubric for regulated growth, distribution, and sales of those substances to entities within the program. Only psilocybin and psilocyin would be okayed for therapeutic use until 2026. Then regulators could decide on whether to allow the therapeutic use of DMT, ibogaine, and mescaline.
  3. It would create the Natural Medicine Advisory Board to create rules and regulations for implementing the therapeutic access program. The board could also make recommendations to the Department of Regulatory Agencies on adding additional substances.

psilocybin (Pixabay)
With the help of more than $2.7 million in funding from the New Approach PAC, which has bankrolled numerous drug reform initiatives across the country, Natural Health Colorado zipped through signature-gathering in a quick three months and qualified for the ballot back in June.

A competing initiative campaign from Decriminalize Nature Colorado, which would have only decriminalized entheogens and not created a therapeutic program, failed to qualify for the ballot. Members of that group have since become some of the most outspoken critics of Initiative 58.

"I do not personally align with I-58 and the heavy out-of-state influence calling the shots in Colorado," said Melanie Rose Rodgers, co-proponent of the Decriminalize Nature initiative. "What happened with cannabis is happening with mushrooms. Folks from marginalized communities, People of Color are being left out -- once again. With all the inequality and rolling back of freedoms that exist today, let us not create new industries that will cater and serve the rich and wealthy while opening the floodgates for anyone able to buy Colorado 'healing center' licenses. I am opposed to the corporate takeover of sacred earth medicines and psychedelics written in I-58."

But Natural Health Colorado and its backers beg to differ, and they are emphasizing the therapeutic aspects of the measure.

"This initiative would give Coloradans access to a new, promising, and research-based treatment option for PTSD, depression, anxiety, and other mental health challenges, in a safe, careful, and beneficial way," said Kevin Matthews, an initiative spokesman who led the Denver psilocybin campaign. "These medicines can be transformative for people who have suffered for years and struggled to find help," he said.

"The Natural Medicine Health Act puts the well-being of patients and communities first," said Josh Kappel, chair of the Natural Medicine Colorado campaign. "It was purposefully designed, with a multi-phase implementation process that sets clear safety rules, while allowing the details of the regulatory structure to be developed by the community and regulators working together."

"Our goal is to make the healing benefits of these natural medicines available to people they can help, including veterans with PTSD, survivors of domestic or sexual abuse, people with treatment-resistant depression, and others for whom our typical mental-health treatments just aren't working," said Ben Unger, psychedelic program director for New Approach PAC.

The initiative is also being endorsed by David Bronner, CEO (Cosmic Engagement Officer) of Dr. Bronner's soaps. "I see what [Initiative 61] does as one seamless policy: making natural medicines -- psychedelic plant and fungal medicines containing psilocybin, DMT, ibogaine or mescaline (excepting peyote) -- available to all adult Coloradans in two powerful healing modalities: via a regulated access model in a therapeutic context; and the self-regulating community healing model in a decriminalized context," Bronner said.

Whether Initiative 61 can pass in November remains to be seen. Natural Health Colorado has said he has no internal polling for this year, but a poll last year had support for legalizing psilocybin at 50 percent. While the poll question was not an exact match with what the initiative offers, it is close, and the level of support suggests that the contest itself could be close. A rule of thumb among initiative campaigns is that they like to be at 60 percent when the final stretch commences, as it now has.

DE Marijuana Legalization Bill Passes Committee, SD Lawmakers Move to Ban MedMJ Edibles, More... (1/27/22)

Psilocybin is making some news this week in Colorado, Wisconsin Republicans roll out a restrictive medical marijuana bill, and more.

South Dakota -- no medical marijuana edibles for you if the legislature has its way. (Creative Commons)
Marijuana Policy

Delaware Marijuana Legalization Bill Wins House Committee Vote. The House Health and Human Development Committee voted Wednesday to approve a marijuana legalization bill, House Bill 150. The bill legalizes possession of up to an ounce of marijuana by people 21 and over but does not allow people to grow their own. Instead, people would have to purchase marijuana from a state-regulated cultivation, manufacturing, and distribution industry. Basically, the same bill has been introduced each year since 2019 but has never gotten as far as a House floor vote. This year, a proposed Social Equity Loan fund was removed because funding measures would require a three-fourths supermajority to pass. Governor Jay Carney (D) remains opposed to the bill despite changes made designed to appease him.

Medical Marijuana

South Dakota House Committee Votes to Ban Edibles. Ignoring the will of the voters, who in 2020 overwhelmingly approved a medical marijuana initiative that included access to marijuana edibles, the House State Affairs Committee on Wednesday voted narrowly to ban them. The committee voted 7-6 to approve House Bill 1058. "The purpose of the bill is about keeping children safe from exposure and accidental ingestion of edibles," claimed sponsor Rep. Fred Deutsch (R-Florence). The bill would make it difficult for medical marijuana retailers to have viable businesses by restricting what are popular items in most medical marijuana states, industry supporters say.

Wisconsin Republicans File Medical Marijuana Bill. State Sen. Mary Felzkowski (R) and Rep. Patrick Snyder (R) have filed a restrictive medical marijuana bill that would bar the use of smoked or vaped marijuana, It would also create a commission to regulate medical marijuana in the state. Physicians would have to be certified by the commission before they could recommend medical marijuana. The bill, which has yet to be posted to the legislative website, faces long odds.in the Senate, where Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu (R) has said he thinks medical marijuana legalization should be a federal issue.

Psychedelics

Colorado Activists File Revised Psilocybin Legalization and Healing Center Initiatives. Activists behind Denver's historic 2019 vote to decriminalize psilocybin have now filed revised versions of a pair of proposed initiatives, one that would legalize psilocybin and one that would create licensed healing centers where the drug could be used for therapeutic purposes. The original legalization initiative included a wide range of psychedelics including DMT, ibogaine, and mescaline, but the new one merely legalizes psilocybin and regulates it for therapeutic use until 2026. After that, regulators could include other psychedelics. The revised initiatives also do away with specified possession limits and include social justice provisions.

Colorado Lawmakers File Bill to Study Psychedelics and Mental Health Treatment. Reps. Alex Valdez (D-Denver), Edie Hooton (D-Boulder), and Joann Ginal (D-Fort Collins) have filed a bill that would create a panel to study psychedelics and mental health treatment. The measure, House Bill 1116, would have the panel meet for one year to "study the use of plant-based medicines to support mental health, report its findings and make policy recommendations" to the Colorado General Assembly, the governor and other state officials.

The panel would consist of 17 members and would include physicians, veterans, natural healers, plant-based medicine advocates, Indigenous communities, criminal defense lawyers and law enforcement, The bill allows for the study of four natural psychedelics: DMT, ibogaine, and psilocybin and psilocin, which are the active ingredients in psychedelic mushrooms.

Drug War Issues

Criminal JusticeAsset Forfeiture, Collateral Sanctions (College Aid, Drug Taxes, Housing, Welfare), Court Rulings, Drug Courts, Due Process, Felony Disenfranchisement, Incarceration, Policing (2011 Drug War Killings, 2012 Drug War Killings, 2013 Drug War Killings, 2014 Drug War Killings, 2015 Drug War Killings, 2016 Drug War Killings, 2017 Drug War Killings, Arrests, Eradication, Informants, Interdiction, Lowest Priority Policies, Police Corruption, Police Raids, Profiling, Search and Seizure, SWAT/Paramilitarization, Task Forces, Undercover Work), Probation or Parole, Prosecution, Reentry/Rehabilitation, Sentencing (Alternatives to Incarceration, Clemency and Pardon, Crack/Powder Cocaine Disparity, Death Penalty, Decriminalization, Defelonization, Drug Free Zones, Mandatory Minimums, Rockefeller Drug Laws, Sentencing Guidelines)CultureArt, Celebrities, Counter-Culture, Music, Poetry/Literature, Television, TheaterDrug UseParaphernalia, Vaping, ViolenceIntersecting IssuesCollateral Sanctions (College Aid, Drug Taxes, Housing, Welfare), Violence, Border, Budgets/Taxes/Economics, Business, Civil Rights, Driving, Economics, Education (College Aid), Employment, Environment, Families, Free Speech, Gun Policy, Human Rights, Immigration, Militarization, Money Laundering, Pregnancy, Privacy (Search and Seizure, Drug Testing), Race, Religion, Science, Sports, Women's IssuesMarijuana PolicyGateway Theory, Hemp, Marijuana -- Personal Use, Marijuana Industry, Medical MarijuanaMedicineMedical Marijuana, Science of Drugs, Under-treatment of PainPublic HealthAddiction, Addiction Treatment (Science of Drugs), Drug Education, Drug Prevention, Drug-Related AIDS/HIV or Hepatitis C, Harm Reduction (Methadone & Other Opiate Maintenance, Needle Exchange, Overdose Prevention, Pill Testing, Safer Injection Sites)Source and Transit CountriesAndean Drug War, Coca, Hashish, Mexican Drug War, Opium ProductionSpecific DrugsAlcohol, Ayahuasca, Cocaine (Crack Cocaine), Ecstasy, Heroin, Ibogaine, ketamine, Khat, Kratom, Marijuana (Gateway Theory, Marijuana -- Personal Use, Medical Marijuana, Hashish), Methamphetamine, New Synthetic Drugs (Synthetic Cannabinoids, Synthetic Stimulants), Nicotine, Prescription Opiates (Fentanyl, Oxycontin), Psilocybin / Magic Mushrooms, Psychedelics (LSD, Mescaline, Peyote, Salvia Divinorum)YouthGrade School, Post-Secondary School, Raves, Secondary School