Decriminalization

City Council members in Lubbock, Texas have rejected a cannabis decriminalization proposal, leaving the issue for voters to decide during next year’s election.

The Marijuana Justice Coalition and Cannabis Freedom Alliance sent a letter to President Joe Biden (D) arguing that the administration’s plan to federally reschedule cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III “would simply maintain federal criminalization” of state-legal cannabis programs.

Cannabis advocates in Lubbock, Texas on Tuesday submitted their petition to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of cannabis in the city after collecting 10,540 signatures, which is more than twice what it takes to force local officials to vote on the proposal.

The Portland, Maine City Council has passed a resolution deprioritizing criminal prosecution for the personal use of psychedelic mushrooms.

Congressional Democrats have reintroduced the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act, which seeks to decriminalize cannabis at the federal level and implement criminal justice reforms.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (D) is set to issue an executive order today deprioritizing the enforcement of laws related to naturally-occurring psychedelics like magic mushrooms or ayahuasca.

Recent polling found that a 61% majority of registered U.S. voters would support legalizing therapeutic access to psychedelics.

The Massachusetts-based group Mental Health Options last week filed paperwork signaling plans to put a psychedelics decriminalization ballot question to voters.

The 2023 Louisiana Survey by LSU found that 70% of Louisianans support allowing adults to possess small amounts of cannabis for personal use.

The California Senate voted last week to decriminalize the possession of psychedelic substances including psilocybin, psilocin, DMT, ibogaine, and mescaline by individuals aged 21 or older.

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) signed a bill last week to implement medical psilocybin legalization and decriminalize the personal use and cultivation of other natural psychedelics; the proposal marks lawmakers’ response to last year’s successful psychedelics legalization voter initiative.

The Connecticut House voted this week to reduce penalties for the possession of small quantities of psilocybin mushrooms.

A committee of Kenosha, Wisconsin city officials voted in favor of reducing the fine for first-time cannabis possession and reducing the bond paid by those who are arrested for possession.

The Texas House approved a cannabis decriminalization proposal last week, reducing penalties for possession up to an ounce. The bill moves next to the Senate, which rejected similar legislation in 2019 and 2021.

According to a recent survey, 53% of Fins believe that cannabis use and possession should not be a crime in Finland but just 24% said that cannabis should be fully legalized.

Since Killeen, Texas voters opted to decriminalize low-level cannabis possession last November, city police have released 77% of the individuals they encountered who were in possession of cannabis.

Indiana lawmakers have opted to go at least another year without enacting cannabis reforms after killing multiple proposals which included decriminalization, medical access, and adult-use legalization and regulated sales.

The Indiana House Committee on Courts and Criminal Code is expected today to hold the state’s first-ever hearing for a cannabis decriminalization measure.

According to statistics from car insurance companies, cannabis law reforms have made no statistically significant impact on the rate of vehicular accidents in Canada and the U.S.

Berkeley, California city officials advanced a psychedelics decriminalization proposal this week despite concerns by some reform advocates that the proposal does not go far enough to deprioritize law enforcement actions.

Activists rallied this week outside of Government House in Bangkok, Thailand, to pressure authorities against rolling back the country’s cannabis decriminalization law.

A cohort of U.S. representatives sent a letter to President Joe Biden asking him to consider pardons of simple cannabis possession convictions for immigrants.

Five Texas cities — Denton, Elgin, Harker Heights, Killeen, and San Marcos — voted in favor of decriminalizing low-level cannabis possession during Tuesday’s midterm elections.

The result of the ballot initiative to decriminalize and regulate psychedelics in Colorado is still too close to call the day after Tuesday’s elections.