Politics
Florida Legislature Passes Bill To Outlaw Psychedelic Mushroom Spores, Sending It To DeSantis’s Desk
A sweeping Florida agricultural bill that includes a provision to outlaw the spores of psychedelic mushrooms has now passed both chambers of the state legislature. It next proceeds to the desk of Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) for his consideration.
Members of the House of Representatives on Tuesday voted 88–27 to pass SB 700, from Sen. Keith Truenow (R). The proposal previously passed the Senate on a 27–9 vote.
The proposed ban on spores of mushrooms that produce psilocybin or psilocin is a small part of the roughly 150-page legislation, which would make a variety of adjustments to Florida’s agricultural laws, including around agricultural lands, utilities and wildlife management.
With respect to psychedelic mushrooms, the bill would outlaw transporting, importing, selling or giving away “spores or mycelium capable of producing mushrooms or other material which will contain a controlled substance, including psilocybin or psilocyn, during its lifecycle.”
Violating the proposed law would be a first-degree misdemeanor, carrying a maximum one year in jail and $1,000 fine.
Lawmakers during the House floor denate tried and failed to make unrelated amendments to the bill before this week’s vote, but both proposed changes ultimately failed. Neither would have affected the the measure’s proposed ban on psychedelic mushroom spores.
Psilocybin and psilocin are the two main psychoactive compounds in psychedelic mushrooms. Although spores themselves typically do not contain psilocybin or psilocin, they eventually produce fruiting bodies—mushrooms—that do contain the psychedelic compounds.
Because the spores don’t contain any controlled substances, the federal government deems them legal.
“If the mushroom spores (or any other material) do not contain psilocybin or psilocin (or any other controlled substance or listed chemical), the material is considered not controlled,” Terrence Boos, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) Drug and Chemical Evaluation Section chief, said in a memo last year. (Using a similar rationale, Boos has said that marijuana seeds are considered federally legal hemp because they themselves don’t contain THC.)
In Florida, a legislative report for HB 651—a House companion bill to the measure now heading to DeSantis—similarly notes that “spores do not contain any psilocybin properties themselves and therefore could be considered legal under current law.”
To prevent that, the proposal would clarify as illegal any spores or mycelium that could produce psilocybin or psilocin at any time in their development.
As for psilocybin and psilocin themselves, the substances are already illegal in Florida. Simple possession is a third-degree felony, carrying up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.
A legislative report for SB 700 notes that psychedelic mushrooms “became popular in the United States during the 1960s when American researchers first studied their healing properties and medical applications. Now, they are listed as a Schedule I controlled substance by the U.S. government, meaning they have no accepted medical use.”
It further says that “any material, compound, mixture, or preparation that contains the hallucinogenic substance known as Psilocybin has high potential for abuse and is not currently accepted as medical treatment in the United States.”
While lawmakers spent considerable time debating various other portions of the bill—especially a proposed ban on fluoride in local water supplies—as it made its way through the legislature, there was hardly any mention of the provision concerning psychedelic mushroom spores.
Meanwhile, the Florida House last Friday unanimously approved a bill that would exempt military veterans from state registration fees for medical marijuana cards, allowing them to obtain the certifications for free.
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As originally filed, the measure would have made more significant changes to the state’s existing medical cannabis program, for example allowing home cultivation as well as reciprocity for out-of-state patients. But the House Health Professions and Programs Subcommittee replaced its language with a two-page substitute that instead would make only small changes to the medical program.
First, it would change how often patients need to renew their medical marijuana cards, from the current annual process to once every two years.
Second, it would waive the $75 registration and renewal fees for veterans, specifying that the state “may not charge a fee for the issuance, replacement, or renewal of an identification card for a qualified patient who is a veteran.”
The changes would take effect July 1.
