Oregon legislature taking up the legalization of 'magic mushrooms'

The potential legalization of magic mushrooms is heading to Olympia next week as state lawmakers prepare to hear testimony on two bills that could change the landscape of mental health treatment.

State legislators have attempted to model a program based on Oregon’s Psilocybin Services Act for the past few years. While Beaver State residents passed a measure in 2020, the Evergreen State has failed to get the ball rolling on its side of the Columbia River since 2022.

Oregon’s approval legalized the supervised use of psilocybin for adults over 21 years old. The state program allows trained facilitators to administer the substance under controlled settings.

Sen. Jesse Salomon, D-Shoreline, started the movement in Olympia in 2022 and hasn’t given up since. He proposed Senate Bill 5201 this year, which picked up bipartisan cosponsors, and there’s also a nearly identical companion, House Bill 1433, to increase the chances of passing.

“Many individuals report having profound experiences after taking psychedelic substances creating lasting impressions and inspiring positive change in their lives,” according to SB 5201 and HB 1433.

The proposals add that clinical trials have shown the substance to be “a promising practice for the treatment of conditions such as substance use disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, treatment-resistant depression, obsessive-compulsive disorders, and other serious maladies.”

According to the bill, the potential effect is much more significant than “mainstream pharmaceutical and clinical interventions, obtained with fewer side effects, and much smaller long-term costs.”

Colorado set out on a path similar to Oregon in 2023 after voters approved a ballot measure there the year prior. Like marijuana, psilocybin mushrooms, also known as magic mushrooms, are still classified as a Schedule 1 substance by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

If approved, SB 5201 and HB 1433 would both legalize the facilitated use of psilocybin and psilocin, another illegal hallucinogen in psychedelic mushrooms. Starting in 2030, both could also add other substances if recommended by the proposed Washington Psychedelic Substances Board.

Upon approval, the following would join the program: dimethyltryptamine, or DMT, which is the active ingredient in ayahuasca; ibogaine, which studies show to help treat opioid addiction; bufotenin, found in psychedelic toads; 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine, also known as MDMA, ecstasy or molly, which research shows to treat post-traumatic stress; and mescaline, which is found in peyote, though, both bills explicitly exclude peyote.

According to a fiscal note for Salomon’s 2022 proposal, that iteration would have cost at least $15.1 million to stand up over the first four years. A fiscal note for the current proposal isn’t available yet, so it’s unclear how much that may have increased since.

If approved, the 2025 proposals would allow for a two-year development phase before the state starts handing out licenses in 2027. Facilitated use would occur at licensed centers, healthcare facilities, a client’s residence with special approval or other locations under certain conditions.

While Oregon was the first state to decriminalize and regulate the use of psilocybin, Colorado followed similarly, with the cities of Oakland and Santa Cruz in California decriminalizing the substance in 2019 and 2020. Washington, D.C., as well as the cities of Somerville, Cambridge and Northampton in Massachusetts, and Detroit, Mich., and Seattle have also done so since then.

“The legislature enacts this act for a threefold purpose: (a) To provide adults in Washington with a regulated, safe means of accessing psychedelic substances … (b) To provide a safe harbor for health professionals … from adverse licensure action within Washington state based on the federal prohibitions; and (c) To advance knowledge about the risks and benefits of the use of psychedelic substances by facilitating research opportunities,” according to the 2025 proposals.

The House Health Care & Wellness Committee will host a public hearing over HB 1433 on Feb. 5, with the Senate Health & Long-Term Care Committee holding another over SB 5201 the following day.