California Campaign Seeks to Legalize Psychedelic Mushrooms

Activists in California are seeking to add a psychedelic mushroom legalization question to 2024 ballots, the San Francisco Standard reports. Ryan Munevar, campaign director for Decriminalize California, told the Standard that the group originally “wanted to go for all psychedelics, but the problem was there wasn’t enough public comprehension about what else was out there.” 

According to the Decriminalize California website, the campaign must collect 546,651 valid signatures by January 10.  

The proposal would allow for the cultivation, manufacturing, testing, distribution, transportation, possession, and consumption of unlimited amounts of magic mushrooms, and psilocybin-infused products, for adults 21-and-older. Under the initiative, the products would carry no taxes unless they were for adult use, which would carry local sales taxes. Additionally, the proposal would not impose special dual local permits and state license requirements.  

The initiative comes after the state Senate in 2021 passed a bill to legalize possession of psychedelics in the state; however, that bill was not taken up by the state House. In May, the Senate passed a similar measure. That bill, which would not legalize sales, was approved on September 1 by the Assembly Appropriations Committee. 

A survey from the University of California, Berkeley in July found 61% of California voters support a regulated framework for the therapeutic use of psychedelics. Another 49% of respondents supported decriminalization of psychedelics.