Read the full article by Russell Nichols at Sacramento News & Review
For the past four years, Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) has been pushing to decriminalize psychedelic drugs — but every time he writes a bill on the matter, policymakers in California just say no.
The latest was Senate Bill 1012. It would’ve given adults the green light to use certain psychedelic substances for therapeutic purposes under strict supervision by a licensed facilitator in a controlled environment. In May 2024, the bill stalled in the Senate Appropriations Committee. A similar bill was vetoed in 2023 by Gov. Gavin Newsom, who suggested the state establish “regulated treatment guidelines.”
Wiener won’t quit.
“We’ve been working for four years to legalize access to psychedelics in California, to bring these substances out of the shadows and into the sunlight, and to improve safety and education around their use,” Wiener said in a statement. “… I’m highly committed to this issue, and we’ll continue to work on expanding access to psychedelics.”
As his psychedelics bill died in committee in 2023, about 60 miles north on Highway 49, another psychedelics project was coming to life in Grass Valley. This one was 30 years in the making, birthed by Brian Chambers, a psychedelic art collector who also seeks to bring psychedelics to the mainstream, but through surreal pieces instead of state policy.