On Saturday, Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed state Senate Bill 58, which would have decriminalized a variety of psychedelic drugs for Californians over the age of 21.
The bill covered psychoactive mushrooms, colloquially known as “magic mushrooms,” which include psilocybin, psilocyn, dimethyltryptamine and mescaline. Additionally, the bill covered dimethyltryptamine (DMT), a natural hallucinogen found in various plants and animals, and peyote, a psychoactive cactus.
The bill’s author, Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), said that the governor’s veto goes against the actions of criminal justice reform advocates who seek to reduce criminal penalties for possession and usage of psychedelics.
“Today’s veto is a huge missed opportunity for California to follow the science and lead,” Wiener said.
In his statement, Newsom said while he supports the decriminalization of psychedelic drugs, the lack of protective measures – dosing information, therapeutic guidelines, rules that prevent exploitation during guided treatments and medical clearance – pushed him to return Senate Bill 58 unsigned.
“Psychedelics have proven to relieve people suffering from certain conditions such as depression, PTSD, traumatic brain injury and other addictive personality traits,” Newsom said in his statement. However, with no therapeutic guidelines in place, he said he could not sign it.
According to David Dadiomov, a clinical assistant professor of clinical pharmacy at USC, psilocybin is effective as treatment for mental health related to depression. In an interview with Annenberg Media, Dadiomov said that he is unsure if vetoing because of a lack of guidelines is a reasonable rationale, since these drugs have already shown to have positive effects on patients.
However, Dadiomov said he was “optimistic” about the potential decriminalization of psychedelics, which would consequently propel their usage for mental health treatments. In his statement, Newsom said he would work to craft legislation that would “authorize permissible uses and consider a framework for potential broader decriminalization” once the “guardrails” are set, which would lay out regulated treatment guidelines.
In a guest commentary for Cal Matters, Joe McKay, a retired FDNY firefighter, advocated for Senate Bill 58, as he said some veterans utilize these substances to heal from traumatic experiences.
According to McKay, the criminalization of therapeutic substances has instilled fear in those who want to safely access them. However, he said that daily medications and coping mechanisms are not effective for many first responders impacted by mental health.
After first learning about psilocybin mushrooms’ positive effects on cluster headaches, he said he felt “hopeful about [his] health.” According to McKay, not only did psilocybin cure his headaches, which would attack him 8-10 times a day, but they revitalized him.
“It’s not an exaggeration to say that psilocybin gave me my life back. It’s been transformative, and allowed me to feel happiness and joy in a way I never thought I would again,” he said.
In an interview with Annenberg Media, Maggie Cutler Young, an assistant director of employer relations at the USC Viterbi school, said that people should be allowed to use psilocybin if it benefits their health.
Young said that she knows friends who use psilocybin mushrooms for therapeutic purposes and find it effective. However, solely relying on anecdotes adds layers of uncertainty around the issue, according to Young.
“I can see why it would be scary to people. It’s just like marijuana was very scary, but it was approved to be used. Personally, I don’t have anything against it,” she said.
Patty Wiesbach-Leach, an assistant director at Viterbi said, “If there are guidelines and studies that show the lack of harm, I don’t have an issue with other people doing it.”
She mentioned that decriminalizing drugs can encourage further research and offer more insight beyond acknowledging the benefits these drugs can provide. According to Weisbach-Leach, more research could enable people to understand the harms of psychedelic drugs and be more informed before making their own choices.
“Making things illegal limits things or even research purposes,” said Wiesbach-Leach. “It would be great to be able to decriminalize something and have a better understanding and do more research so that we have a better picture of what the benefits and the downsides can be.”