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Decriminalizing ‘magic mushrooms’ on Minnesota legislative agenda

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Published  January 1, 2025 5:38pm CST
Politics
FOX 9

‘Magic mushrooms’ under microscope in MN

Minnesota's Psychedelic Medicine Task Force has issued a report of its findings that recommends decriminalizing psilocybin mushrooms in Minnesota as soon as this legislative session. FOX 9’s Corin Hoggard has the details.

The Brief

    • Minnesota's Psychedelic Medicine Task Force recommended decriminalizing psilocybin mushrooms in a report released Jan. 1.
    • The group's three bipartisan recommendations also included establishing a state program for administering mushrooms and funding more research into the potential benefits of psychedelics.
    • Some Republicans support the incremental changes, but worry psychedelics will follow the same path as marijuana and end up with a messy legalization.

ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - "Magic mushrooms" have serious support at the Minnesota Capitol in the new year.

Magic in Minnesota

Closer to clearance: The state's Psychedelic Medicine Task Force released its report on Jan. 1, and one of the recommendations would decriminalize mushrooms.

The task force considered decriminalizing other drugs as well, but the group ultimately settled on incremental change.

The Psychedelic Medicine Task Force had a little magic up its sleeve with a New Year’s Day report release.

After two years of work, the group got bipartisan support, moving mushrooms closer to clearance.

"Doesn't mean I'm a wild, crazy person who believes in all drugs," said Sen. Mark Koran, (R-North Branch).

Psychedelic suggestions

Supported ideas: A supermajority, including Sen. Koran, endorsed the group’s three recommendations:

  • Creating a state-regulated clinical program for therapeutic psilocybin-containing mushrooms.
  • Decriminalizing the use and possession of psilocybin-containing mushrooms.
  • Funding more research into potential health benefits of MDMA, psilocybin, and LSD.

Solely psilocybin 

Rejected ideas: The task force considered decriminalizing MDMA and LSD as well, but some members balked at accepting synthetic drugs.

"Separating psilocybin mushrooms from the synthetically derived psilocybin as well as MDMA and LSD," said the task force's Dakota representative Guthrie Capossela. "We’d want to avoid sort of the meth-fentanyl crisis we see in that space."

Why psychedelics?

Digging deeper: The task force saw evidence that mushrooms can help people with mood disorders, anxiety and alcohol abuse.

Veterans in the group said it helped them with treatment-resistant PTSD.

"If the research proves that it's something we should move from a medicinal perspective, I'm all for it," Sen. Koran said.

So he wants to see how a medical mushroom industry might work.

What could go wrong?

Legalizing side effects: But he’s concerned the road to legalization may look the same as it has with marijuana.

"It better look like a regulated environment that is functional, and it isn't the wild, wild west, as we kind of see in the cannabis side today," he said.

These recommendations are not a sure-thing to pass this year’s legislature, but Koran says if a bill is limited to what the task force recommended, it would stand a good chance.

PoliticsMinnesotaHealth