Minnesota lawmakers have introduced a bill that would legalize the non-commercial possession and cultivation of psilocybin by adults 21 and older.
Rep. Andy Smith (D) filed the legislation on Monday, with seven original cosponsors. The measure largely informed by the findings and recommendations of a task force that was established under a separate bill that Gov. Tim Walz (D) signed into law in 2024.
“I’ve had a couple folks ask me this: ‘We’re in a tight moment. Inflation is rising. Why is this something that you’re working on?’” Smith, who served on the task force and whose prior legislation created the body, told Marijuana Moment in a phone interview on Tuesday. “And it goes back to, all of us recognize, know someone or struggle ourselves with mental health—and that has been apparent for a while.”
“I think the pandemic highlighted how much we have to go as a society and how we deal with very complex issues, and these medications have shown, in studies, to have great potential to help in that,” Smith said. “I think that’s why it’s important—and it’s important to move on these quickly and responsibly.”
Under the lawmaker’s proposal, the state law would be revised to make it so adults would not face criminal or civil penalties for the personal “use, possession, transportation and cultivation.”
The purpose section of the legislation states that the reform is meant to “reduce the burden on the criminal justice system, promote harm reduction, and enable individuals to make personal decisions regarding the use of psilocybin without fear of prosecution.”
A Psychedelic Medicine Board would be established under the bill to establish possession limits. Smith said that requirement—as well as components that may prove more controversial in an especially divided legislature such as decriminalizing cultivation—will likely be up for debate as the measure moves through the process.
Hellbound and Down 