State lawmakers will not be voting this year on a bill that would remove the criminal penalties for possessing many psychedelic drugs in California.
The bill's author, state Senator Scott Wiener of San Francisco, withdrew the bill on Thursday, citing a lack of support. But, he said he plans to introduce it again next year after trying to win over more of his colleagues.
The Senate voted 21-16 in favor of SB 519 Controlled Substances: decriminalization of certain hallucinogenic substances in June. If the Assembly had also approved the bill, possession of drugs such as LSD, magic mushrooms, DMT and MDMA would no longer be a criminal offense but selling those drugs would still be illegal.
Wiener said the bill addresses the fact that the war on drugs has failed. “Drugs, mental health, addiction, these are hard issues. And these are issues that we have, frankly, not grappled with as a society,” said Wiener.
In April, the head of the National Institute of Drug Abuse, Nora Volkow, called for the US to research “public health–based alternatives to criminalization, ranging from drug courts and other diversion programs to policies decriminalizing drug possession” in a Health Affairs blog.
“People with substance use disorders need treatment, not punishment, and drug use disorders should be approached with a demand for high-quality care and with compassion for those affected,” Volkow wrote.
Republicans have been united in opposing the push to decriminalize psychedelics, and some Democrats have expressed concerns about the bill.
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