The named psychedelic laws, bills, ballot measures, and court cases people actually search for — explained in plain English. What each one does, what it does not do, and where it stands in 2026.
Only Oregon and Colorado have established operational, state-regulated psychedelic programs in the United States. Under Oregon Measure 109, licensed psilocybin service centers have operated since 2023 as the first regulated program in the country. Colorado Proposition 122 established a licensing framework for healing centers and decriminalized personal use of five natural psychedelics for adults aged 21 and older.
Most other states restricted action to research. Between 2024 and 2026, legislatures in Texas, Utah, and Arizona funded clinical studies, pilot initiatives, or advisory panels. Wider reform stalled when California proposals failed, Massachusetts voters rejected a 2024 ballot measure, and bills in New York and Illinois remained pending.
Review the legislation cards below for statutory texts and individual bill histories. To compare jurisdictions, check our legal status by state guide or explore the psychedelic legal map. Follow active legislative updates through our psychedelic legalization tracker.
The FDA designation that put MDMA and psilocybin on the fast track — what it is, who has it, and what it does not guarantee.
US Federal (FDA) · 2017–present · Active program; multiple psychedelic designations granted
The 2018 federal law that lets terminally ill patients seek investigational drugs — and why psychedelic advocates invoke it.
US Federal · 2018 · Passed and active
How the FY2024 defense bill funded the first active-duty military psychedelic trials in decades.
US Federal (Department of Defense) · 2023 · Signed into law (FY2024 NDAA)
The 2006 Supreme Court case that protects religious ayahuasca use under federal law.
US Federal (Supreme Court) · 2006 · Decided 8–0 in favor of the church
The 1970 federal law that classifies psilocybin, MDMA, and LSD as having 'no accepted medical use' — and why Schedule I status is both the barrier and the target of US reform.
United States (Federal) · 1970 · Active — psilocybin, MDMA, LSD, DMT remain Schedule I
The 2025 Booker–Paul–Dean–Mace bipartisan bill that would reschedule psilocybin and MDMA and create a federal research-to-access pathway.
United States (Federal) · 2025 · Pending — 119th Congress
The 2023 Booker–Paul Senate bill that would have removed federal barriers to psychedelic research — and the lessons it left for its successor.
United States (Federal) · 2023 · Did not pass 118th Congress — succeeded by Freedom to Heal Act (2025)
The 1994 amendment that gives Native American Church members an explicit federal right to use peyote in religious ceremonies, regardless of state drug laws.
United States (Federal) · 1994 · Active — 42 U.S.C. § 1996a
The 1993 federal law that gives religious groups a legal tool to seek Schedule I exemptions — and why the DEA has granted zero petitions through 2024 despite the O Centro ruling.
United States (Federal) · 1993 · Active — 42 U.S.C. § 2000bb
The Supreme Court ruling that states need not exempt religious peyote use from drug laws — and the decision that directly triggered Congress to pass RFRA and the 1994 AIRFA amendment.
United States (Federal) · 1990 · Decided — 494 U.S. 872 (1990)
The federal authorization that directed the Department of Veterans Affairs to fund and conduct MDMA-assisted therapy studies for veterans with PTSD — parallel to, but separate from, the NDAA provision.
United States (Federal) · 2024 · Active — VA research underway
The Department of Veterans Affairs' five-site psilocybin trial for treatment-resistant depression in veterans — sponsored by Compass Pathways, launched August 2026, running alongside the separate VA MDMA study.
United States (Federal) · 2026 · Active — enrollment underway at five VA sites
An ARPA-H-funded, 80-person USC trial of psilocybin therapy with and without eight weeks of mindfulness training, announced October 7, 2026. Investigational research, not approval and not legalization.
United States (Federal) · 2026 · Announced Oct 2026 — investigational trial; no results, no registry record found
A 2023 House bill that would have directed the FDA to issue guidance specifically for psychedelic-assisted therapy trials — simplifying research design without touching drug scheduling.
United States (Federal) · 2023 · Did not advance — 118th Congress; provisions carried into PATH Caucus bills
The 2025 Correa–Bergman PATH Caucus bill that would fund university Centers of Excellence for psychedelic research — the infrastructure approach to unlocking FDA approval.
United States (Federal) · 2025 · Pending — 119th Congress
How the FDA's priority review voucher program creates a financial incentive for developing psilocybin and other psychedelics as treatments — and which compounds have applied.
United States (Federal) · 2026 · Active — first psychedelic PRV applications in review (2026)
The FDA's July 2026 final guidance for sponsors running psychedelic drug trials, plus the September 14, 2026 public hearing on future therapeutic use — what the agency will and will not take comment on.
United States (Federal) · 2026 · Finalized July 14, 2026; public hearing held September 14, 2026 (18,000+ registered); written comment period open through October 5, 2026
HRSA's July 2026 request for information on training clinicians and delivering psychedelic therapy in community health centers, if a psychedelic drug is ever FDA-approved — 59 comments filed before the August 13 deadline.
United States (Federal) · 2026 · Comment period closed August 13, 2026; HRSA has not announced a rulemaking timeline
DEA's notice of proposed rulemaking (Docket DEA1715) to place 4-OH-DiPT, 5-MeO-AMT, 5-MeO-MiPT, 5-MeO-DET and DiPT in Schedule I, with comments due October 23, 2026.
United States (Federal) · 2026 · Proposed rule; comments due October 23, 2026 (Docket DEA1715)
The Tenth Circuit's October 5, 2026 opinion vacating the injunction that had blocked Utah's prosecution of Singularism founder Bridger Jensen, and what remains open.
Tenth Circuit (Utah) · 2026 · Decided October 5, 2026 (No. 25-4115); remanded in part
A sealed DEA memorandum of agreement and an Iowa Board of Pharmacy registration for one church's ayahuasca sacrament: what is public, what is sealed, and what it does not change.
US Federal and Iowa · 2026 · DEA agreement sealed (disclosed June 2026); Iowa registration agreed October 5, 2026 on one-year probation
The Natural Medicine Health Act — Colorado decriminalized five natural psychedelics in 2022 and built a licensed psilocybin healing-center program.
Colorado · 2022 · Passed; healing-center licensing began 2024–2025
The Oregon Psilocybin Services Act — the first US law to create a legal, regulated psilocybin therapy program.
Oregon · 2020 · Passed; licensed service centers operating since 2023
Oregon's 2020 drug decriminalization law — and why lawmakers rolled back the possession provisions in 2024.
Oregon · 2020 · Passed 2020; possession decriminalization repealed September 2024
California's two big psychedelic bills — Scott Wiener's SB 58 (vetoed) and SB 1012 (stalled) — and where state reform stands now.
California · 2023–2024 · SB 58 vetoed (2023); SB 1012 did not pass (2024)
Texas committed $50 million to FDA ibogaine clinical trials in 2025 — the largest state investment in psychedelic research in US history.
Texas · 2025 · Passed and signed (2025)
New Mexico's 2025 law creating a licensed medical psilocybin therapy program under physician oversight — the first state to adopt an explicitly medical model.
New Mexico · 2025 · Signed — implementation in progress
Arizona's 2025 law funding $5 million in ibogaine research at state universities, focused on veterans with treatment-resistant PTSD and opioid use disorder.
Arizona · 2025 · Signed — research phase
Arizona's 2025 law that would let pharmacies dispense FDA-approved psilocybin the moment the DEA reschedules it out of Schedule I — but changes nothing about legal access today.
Arizona · 2025 · Signed — conditional, not yet in effect
Nevada's 2025 law establishing a legislative working group to study and recommend a regulatory framework for psychedelic-assisted therapy.
Nevada · 2025 · Signed — working group convening
The November 2024 Massachusetts ballot measure that would have created a supervised psychedelic therapy program — and why it narrowly failed with about 43% yes.
Massachusetts · 2024 · Failed — November 2024 (~43% yes)
The New York Assembly bill, sponsored by Linda Rosenthal, that would create a licensed supervised psilocybin therapy program in the most populous US state on the East Coast.
New York · 2025 · Pending — 2025–2026 Assembly session
New Hampshire's Supreme Court ruled its state constitution, not federal law, requires a compelling-interest test for a member's sacramental psilocybin use — then sent the case back to the trial court rather than dismissing it outright.
New Hampshire · 2020 · Decided December 22, 2020; vacated and remanded, not a final acquittal
Utah's 2024 law creating a tightly scoped pilot program to study psilocybin and MDMA therapy at approved research sites — framed as a veterans and mental health measure.
Utah · 2024 · Enacted — pilot implementation phase
Virginia's 2025 'trigger' bill that would automatically establish a psilocybin therapy program if and when federal scheduling changes or FDA grants approval.
Virginia · 2025 · Pending — contingent on federal action
Washington State's 2025 bill to establish a licensed supervised psilocybin therapy system — a major West Coast state following in Oregon's footsteps.
Washington State · 2025 · Pending — 2025 legislative session
An Illinois 2025 House bill that would decriminalize personal possession of psilocybin mushrooms — part of a wave of Midwest state-level psychedelic reform efforts.
Illinois · 2025 · Pending — 2025 Illinois General Assembly
Connecticut's 2025 House bill that would reduce penalties for personal psilocybin possession to a civil infraction, following the state's earlier cannabis decriminalization.
Connecticut · 2025 · Pending — 2025 Connecticut General Assembly
A 2025 wave of state 'trigger bills' would automatically legalize or regulate psychedelic therapy the moment federal law changes — and the strategy is gaining traction across party lines.
Multiple US States · 2025 · Multiple pending — CO HB 25-1063, IA HF 14, RI HB 5186, VA SB 1135, and others
Colorado's 2026 law creates an Ibogaine Research Pilot Program with up to five licensed sites, the first step toward adding ibogaine to the state's regulated natural-medicine program.
Colorado · 2026 · Passed and signed; effective August 12, 2026
Louisiana's Act 956 funds FDA-authorized clinical trials of psilocybin, ibogaine, and MDMA using opioid-settlement dollars — the first multi-substance state psychedelic research program.
Louisiana · 2026 · Enacted (Act No. 956); effective August 1, 2026
The Department of Health's proposed program rule under the Medical Psilocybin Act: what it would require, what drew objections at the October 2, 2026 hearing, and what remains proposed.
New Mexico · 2026 · Proposed rule; public hearing held October 2, 2026; not adopted as of October 19, 2026
Decriminalize Denver — in 2019 Denver became the first US city to decriminalize psilocybin mushrooms.
Denver, Colorado · 2019 · Passed (first US city to decriminalize psilocybin)
The Entheogenic Plant and Fungus Policy Act — DC voters made natural psychedelics the lowest police priority in 2020.
Washington, D.C. · 2020 · Passed (76% yes)
The June 2019 Oakland City Council resolution that made entheogenic plants and fungi the lowest law-enforcement priority — and launched a national campaign that reached 20+ cities.
Oakland, CA · 2019 · Active — lowest-priority enforcement city policy
Detroit's November 2021 ballot measure that passed with 61% of the vote, directing police to make entheogenic plant medicines the city's lowest enforcement priority.
Detroit, MI · 2021 · Active — lowest-priority enforcement city policy
Beyond Denver and DC — more than 20 US cities have made entheogenic plants and fungi the lowest law-enforcement priority. Every city, what each measure covers, and what actually changed.
Multiple US Cities · 2019–2023 · Active — 20+ cities with lowest-priority enforcement orders
The TGA down-scheduling that made Australia the first country where psychiatrists can legally prescribe MDMA and psilocybin.
Australia · 2023 · Active since July 1, 2023
The 2026 law that made the Czech Republic the first EU country to regulate medical psilocybin.
Czech Republic · 2025 (effective Jan 1, 2026) · Passed; in effect January 1, 2026
Portugal's landmark 2001 drug decriminalization — the world's most-cited model, and what it means for psychedelics.
Portugal · 2001 · Active for 20+ years
Why psilocybin truffles are legal in the Netherlands while mushrooms are banned — the Opium Act loophole explained.
Netherlands · 2008 · Active (mushrooms banned 2008; truffles remain legal)
The Canadian federal pathway that lets physicians request psilocybin and MDMA for individual patients with serious or life-threatening conditions.
Canada · 2022 · Active — SAP amendments effective January 5, 2022
Switzerland's Article 8 exceptional-authorization pathway has allowed MDMA- and psilocybin-assisted therapy for patients for over a decade — Europe's longest-running program.
Switzerland · 2014 · Active — individual authorizations issued by FOPH/BAG
Jamaica never scheduled psilocybin or psilocin under its Dangerous Drugs Act — creating a legal environment where mushroom retreats operate openly for international clients.
Jamaica · n/a · Active — psilocybin uncontrolled under Jamaican law
Brazil is the only country with explicit national-level authorization for ayahuasca — a 2010 CONAD resolution that formalized 30 years of tacit acceptance.
Brazil · 2010 · Active — CONAD Resolution 1/2010
New Zealand became one of the first countries to grant regulatory approval for a named prescriber to administer psilocybin in therapy — under Section 29 of the Medicines Act.
New Zealand · 2026 · Active — limited prescriber approvals under Medicines Act s.29
The UK Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs' 2023 recommendation to move psilocybin from Schedule 1 to Schedule 2 — and why the government has not yet acted.
United Kingdom · 2023 · Pending government action — psilocybin remains Schedule 1 (UK) as of 2026
Germany allows individual-patient psilocybin therapy for severe treatment-resistant depression via the §13 Medicines Act compassionate-use pathway — and the CIMH is Europe's center of gravity.
Germany · 2023 · Active — individual-patient compassionate use (§13 AMG)
Mexico classifies psilocybin and peyote as restricted substances, but constitutional protections for indigenous cultural and spiritual practices shield traditional Mazatec and Huichol use.
Mexico · n/a · Active — constitutional indigenous protections; substances remain restricted for others
Costa Rica never scheduled ibogaine — creating a legal environment where ibogaine treatment clinics operate openly and serve patients from countries where ibogaine remains illegal.
Costa Rica · n/a · Active — ibogaine uncontrolled under Costa Rican law
More named-policy explainers from our guides library.
The April 2026 federal order on Priority Vouchers, Right to Try, and rescheduling.
The full roundup of 30+ US city and county decriminalization measures.
State-by-state psilocybin law, licensed programs, and city deprioritization.
Country-by-country MDMA legality and therapy-access pathways.
Every legal access pathway for psychedelics in the United States.
Each act page is built from primary sources — the statute or ballot text itself, the relevant agency or court record, and official government pages — not secondary summaries. We link the underlying documents inline so you can verify any claim, and we re-check bill numbers and status on every review.
Recent time-sensitive briefings on new laws, votes, and court rulings.
A new phase 2 trial finds psilocybin reduces inflammation in Parkinson’s disease, suggesting a possible disease-modifying role. This insight could shift research and regulatory focus toward psychedelics’ neuroprotective potential, but key risks and unknowns remain.
Oct 21, 2026
A new secondary analysis of a U.S. MDMA-assisted therapy trial for social anxiety disorder reveals that session experiences of interconnectedness and self-transcendence predict post-treatment wellbeing, but not symptom reduction. This finding could reshape outcome measures in future psychedelic research and regulatory review.
Oct 20, 2026
A robust deep learning model now enables more accurate, scalable sleep stage classification in preclinical studies, even under varied pharmacological interventions—advancing psychedelic and CNS drug research reliability.
Oct 20, 2026
Optimi Health has finalized GMP-grade MDMA manufacturing for a Phase 3 PTSD trial, addressing key supply and regulatory hurdles. This development signals maturing industry capacity and highlights both opportunities and unresolved risks in psychedelic-assisted therapy research.
Oct 20, 2026
Optimi Health has finalized MDMA production for Phase 3 PTSD trials in Canada and Israel, and for commercial supply in Australia, advancing international clinical research and highlighting progress in psychedelic medicine supply chains.
Oct 20, 2026
This briefing examines how Michael Pollan’s works have shaped Western narratives on psilocybin, raising unresolved ethical, cultural, and policy issues regarding Mazatec Indigenous rights and benefit-sharing as the psychedelic industry expands.
Oct 19, 2026
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