Gov. Gavin Newsom Vetoes Bill to Decriminalize Plant- and Fungus-Based Psychedelic Drugs
Key Highlights :
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Saturday vetoed a bill that would have removed criminal penalties for using and possessing small amounts of hallucinogens, including psilocybin “magic” mushrooms and the cactus-derived drug mescaline. Despite his overall support for using plant- and fungus-based psychedelic drugs to treat mental illness, Newsom's veto came amidst a movement to decriminalize and even legalize the fungus-based drug popularly known as “shrooms,” along with other plant- and fungus-based psychedelics.
The bill, which would have also decriminalized the psilocybin mushroom extract psilocin and the psychoactive compound dimethyltryptamine, or DMT, would have eliminated criminal penalties for using specific quantities of the drugs for people 21 and older. In a letter to state senators, who three weeks ago passed the bill, SB 58, Newsom wrote that he could not sign the bill without regulated “treatment guidelines” on dosing information and therapeutic use, along with “rules to prevent against exploitation during guided treatments,” and a medical-clearance process to check for “underlying psychoses.”
Newsom promised California would lead on addressing mental health through psychedelic drugs, but he urged lawmakers to send him a bill next year with such guidelines. He also left the door open for wider permitted uses of the substances, saying he was “committed to working with the legislature and sponsors of this bill to craft legislation that would authorize permissible uses and consider a framework for potential broader decriminalization in the future, once the impacts, dosing, best practice, and safety guardrails are thoroughly contemplated and put in place.”
State Sen. Scott Wiener, who put forward the bill, called Newsom’s veto “a setback for the huge number of Californians — including combat veterans and first responders — who are safely using and benefiting from these non-addictive substances and who will now continue to be classified as criminals under California law.” Wiener promised to be “back with legislation next year.”
The plant-based drugs at issue in the bill remain illegal under federal law. But Newsom’s veto comes amid a movement to decriminalize and even legalize the fungus-based drug popularly known as “shrooms,” along with other plant- and fungus-based psychedelics. UC Berkeley researchers indicating 61% of registered voters in the U.S. support legalizing regulated therapeutic access to psychedelics. Oakland’s city council in 2019 passed a resolution decriminalizing consciousness-altering plants including psilocybin mushrooms, following shortly on the heels of Denver, the first city in the U.S. to decriminalize psilocybin, via a ballot measure. In early 2020, the city council in Santa Cruz voted unanimously in favor of a resolution similar to Oakland’s. Colorado voters followed suit with approval of a state-wide ballot measure last year, and Oregon, following a 2021 ballot measure, this year became the first state to legalize psilocybin use by adults.
The 21st Century’s psychedelic movement has received boosts from celebrities including boxer Mike Tyson, who that psilocybin mushrooms freed him from mental distress and suicidal thoughts. Prince Harry, the English Duke of Sussex, wrote in ” that taking the mushrooms helped him “redefine” reality and cope with grief and trauma from the 1997 death of his mother, Princess Diana, when he was 12. More locally, former Specialized Bicycles CEO , a foundation dedicated to researching and promoting psychedelic treatments for addiction and trauma.
The U.S. National Institute on Drug Abuse recognizes “growing research interest” in psychedelic drugs for treating mental health disorders. But the institute also warns of side effects and said data from 2000 to 2016 show the most common short-term effects reported by poison-control hotline callers about taking psilocybin or the chemical hallucinogen LSD were agitation, rapid heartbeat, pupil dilation, confusion, and vomiting. Other potential adverse reactions include fear and anxiety, according to the institute.
Newsom's veto was opposed by a Marin County-based group calling itself the California Coalition for Psychedelic Safety and Education. Lisa Hudson, a member of the organization, this year that she lost her 16-year-old son Shayne Rebbetoy in 2020 after he took mushrooms, though he could fly, and leapt from the family’s 40-foot-tall deck in San Anselmo.
Newsom’s veto comes despite his overall support for using plant- and fungus-based psychedelic drugs to treat mental illness. He believes that “peer-reviewed science and powerful personal anecdotes lead me to support new opportunities to address mental health through psychedelic medicines like those addressed in this bill,” and that “psychedelics have proven to relieve people suffering from certain conditions such as depression, PTSD, traumatic brain injury, and other addictive personality traits.”
The movement to decriminalize and even legalize the fungus-based drug popularly known as “shrooms” is gaining momentum in the U.S. with the potential to revolutionize the way mental health is addressed. However, Newsom's veto reflects the importance of having regulated “treatment guidelines” on dosing information and therapeutic use, along with “rules to prevent against exploitation during guided treatments,” and a medical-clearance process to check for “underlying psychoses” in order to ensure the safety of those who choose to use psychedelic drugs for medicinal
