Another psychedelics bill has been prefiled in New York for the 2025 session—this one calling for the legalization of certain entheogenic substances such as psilocybin and ibogaine for adults 21 and older.
Sponsored by Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal (D), along with eight cosponsors, the legislation would amend state statute to make legal the “possession, use, cultivation, production, creation, analysis, gifting, exchange, or sharing by or between natural persons of twenty-one years of age or older of a natural plant or fungus-based hallucinogen.”
DMT, ibogaine, mescaline, psilocybin and psilocyn would fall under the definition of “natural plant or fungus-based hallucinogens” that would be legalized by the bill.
Further, the legislation would authorize people to engage in psychedelic services “with or without remuneration,” as well as use the entheogens in religious ceremonies.
State and local law enforcement would be prohibited from cooperating or providing assistance to the federal government for the purpose of enforcing controlled substances laws against activities made legal under the state law.
The measure goes on to outline a series of protections: People couldn’t lose professional licenses, public assistance or be denied mental health or behavioral health services simply for using psychedelics. And their lawful use also couldn’t be the sole basis for a child welfare investigation.
New York localities wouldn’t be allowed to enact laws criminalizing psychedelics, but they could “adopt and implement legislation and policies which bear directly on or are related to natural plant or fungus-based hallucinogens in furtherance” of the bill.
Finally, the proposal would remove psilocybin, psilocyn, DMT, mescaline and ibogaine from the state’s banned substances list.
“The failed war on drugs has led to devastating consequences for people across the nation,” a justification memo attached to the bill says. “The criminalization of certain substances has not only left countless people incarcerated, it also has prevented individuals from accessing natural hallucinogens that can provide relief in battling mental health problems, substance use disorder, chronic pain or other health conditions.”
While the state has taken “important steps” by legalizing marijuana, “more must be done to allow individuals to access the benefits
that natural hallucinogens can bring,” it says. “Years of research into naturally occurring substances has documented their success in alleviating pain, substance use disorder, symptoms associated with post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety disorders, including end of life anxiety and other conditions.”
Rosenthal filed a nearly identical version of the bill in 2023, but it did not advance out of committee.
She also introduced legislation in 2022 that would have simply removed psilocybin and psilocyn from the state’s list of controlled substances, effectively legalizing the compounds. Also that year, the lawmaker sponsored a measure that would create a “psychedelic research institute” tasked with studying the therapeutic potential of the substances for certain conditions and making policy recommendations.
Rosenthal’s new bill is being introduced just days after another New York lawmaker, Sen. Nathalia Fernandez (D), prefiled a measure that would legalize psilocybin therapy for patients with qualifying conditions.
Under that proposal, people could receive psilocybin treatment from a certified facilitator in a clinical setting, or at their home if they’re unable to travel. Patients and facilitators would receive protections against state-level prosecution.
Fernandez also filed an earlier version of the bill last session, but it did not move out of committee either. Only minor technical changes have been made in the latest iteration.
New York legislators have been pursuing psychedelics reform in a variety of ways over recent years.
Last year, for example, Assembly Health Committee Chair Amy Paulin (D) introduced a separate bill to legalize psilocybin for adults, provided they obtain a permit after undergoing a health screening and educational course.
Bicameral New York lawmakers said at a briefing last year that there was a “real chance” that legislation to legalize psilocybin-assisted therapy would advance through committee, emphasizing that delaying action would “neglect” many “people who need help” with certain mental health conditions. That did not ultimately materialize, however.
“We’re in a mental health crisis, and so we need every tool that’s available to us,” Assemblymember Pat Burke (D), who sponsored another bill to create a psilocybin therapy pilot program for 10,000 people, said. He added that “we’re here to turn the page” on the broader drug war.
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Meanwhile, New York officials recently announced that the state’s legal marijuana market has now surpassed the $1 billion sales mark. Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) called the milestone “a testament to the hard work of those who helped build the strongest cannabis industry in the nation: one that prioritizes equity, ensures public safety, and empowers communities.”
The figure reflects total sales since the cannabis market’s launch more than two years ago, in late 2022.
After a slow rollout in marked by lawsuits and other delays, legal marijuana sales in New York have picked up significantly in the past several months. Regulators say that’s the result of more licensed businesses opening as well as what they describe as a successful crackdown on unlicensed shops.
Separately, in November, Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes (D) called for the state to extend financial aid to retail operators operators struggling under high-cost loans from a social equity fund created as a core part of the legalization program.
Later in the month, Hochul signed two new cannabis-related bills into law—one to revive the Cannabis Growers Showcase program, where producers sell products directly to consumers at farmers market-style events, and another clarifying that cannabis is categorized as an agricultural crop in the state.
The governor argued in June, meanwhile, that there’s a direct correlation between stepped-up enforcement and “dramatically” increased legal sales. A report by state officials earlier this year found both “growing pains” and “successful efforts” in New York’s marijuana market launch.
Photo elements courtesy of carlosemmaskype and Apollo.
Another psychedelics bill has been prefiled in New York for the 2025 session—this one calling for the legalization of certain entheogenic substances such as psilocybin and ibogaine for adults 21 and older. Sponsored by Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal (D), along with eight cosponsors, the legislation would amend state statute to make legal the “possession, use, cultivation, Read More
