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 HB 6380 is a 2025 decriminalization bill that would remove criminal penalties for personal psilocybin possession below a set threshold. Rep. Joshua Elliott (D-88th District) filed the bill in January 2025 as part of a broader push for psychedelic harm reduction in the state.
The bill does two specific things. First, it changes qualifying possession of psilocybin from a criminal offense to a civil infraction. Second, it removes paraphernalia charges for items used to consume psilocybin, so a person found with a pipe or scale would no longer face a separate criminal count just for that item.
It does not legalize psilocybin, create a therapy program, or allow sales. This is a narrow possession bill — nothing more.
Elliott has introduced psilocybin decriminalization bills in multiple Connecticut sessions. His argument is straightforward: psilocybin shows promise in FDA-reviewed clinical trials for depression, PTSD, and addiction, and arresting people for personal possession serves no public-safety purpose. Judiciary Committee Co-Chair Rep. Steve Stafstrom (D) made a similar argument on the House floor in 2025, noting psilocybin's effectiveness for mental illness including PTSD, addictions, depression, and anxiety.
Psilocybin is a Schedule I controlled substance under Connecticut law, which mirrors the federal classification under the Controlled Substances Act. Under the existing state code, personal possession is a criminal offense at every quantity.
A first-offense possession charge carries up to 364 days in jail and a fine of up to $2,000. A second or subsequent offense can be prosecuted as a Class E felony, with up to three years in prison. There is no civil infraction tier — any possession is a criminal matter today.
Connecticut also criminalizes drug paraphernalia. Someone found with items used to consume psilocybin can face a separate charge on top of the possession charge.
HB 6380 would reduce psilocybin possession below the bill's threshold from a criminal offense to a civil infraction. Civil infractions carry fines but no arrest, no criminal record, and no risk of incarceration.
The structure mirrors what Connecticut already does for small-amount cannabis possession: a $150 fine for a first offense and a $200–$500 fine for subsequent civil violations. The bill applies the same logic to psilocybin.
Possession above the threshold would remain a criminal offense. Sales, distribution, and manufacturing would also remain illegal under state law. This is a personal-possession-only measure.
Psilocybin would remain a Schedule I controlled substance under federal law regardless of what Connecticut does at the state level. A state decrim law removes the state criminal penalty, not the federal one. That means federal agents could still enforce federal law on federal property or in federally funded contexts.
It also means there is no legal place to buy psilocybin in Connecticut under HB 6380. No retail, no dispensary, no licensed therapist access — those would require a separate law entirely.
Connecticut decriminalized cannabis possession in 2011 — a model that directly shapes how HB 6380 is framed. Gov. Dannel Malloy signed Senate Bill 1014 in 2011, making possession of under half an ounce of cannabis a $150 civil infraction rather than a criminal offense. The same $200–$500 fine tier applied to subsequent violations.
Connecticut legalized cannabis entirely in 2021. The 10-year gap between decriminalization and legalization illustrates how incremental this process typically is. HB 6380 is the decriminalization step for psilocybin — not legalization, and not a therapy program.
| Feature | Cannabis (post-2011) | Psilocybin — HB 6380 proposal |
|---|---|---|
| Small personal possession | Civil infraction ($150 first offense) | Civil infraction (same structure proposed) |
| Paraphernalia | Decriminalized for cannabis items | Decriminalized for psilocybin items |
| Sales and distribution | Criminal (until legalization in 2021) | Remains criminal |
| Retail access | Legal since 2021 under HB 5150 | No — not in scope of HB 6380 |
| Therapy or supervised use | Not applicable | Not in scope — separate program needed |
| Federal law status | Schedule I (no federal change) | Schedule I (no federal change) |
When to cite the cannabis comparison: the parallel is strong for understanding the legislative logic — Connecticut has walked this road before and found that decriminalization is a distinct, earlier step. The main difference is that psilocybin has no equivalent of the adult-use retail market that cannabis reached in 2021. For where psilocybin legalization and therapy programs stand today, see our guide to where magic mushrooms are legal.
HB 6380 was filed in January 2025 and referred to the Joint Committee on Judiciary, where it was assigned for review. A public hearing on the bill was held on March 7, 2025.
The related HB 7065 — the Judiciary Committee's raised version addressing the same topic — advanced further. The Joint Judiciary Committee approved HB 7065 in April 2025 on a 29–12 vote. The full House passed it 74–65 on May 19, 2025, sending it to the Senate.
Governor Lamont's position on decriminalization remains cautious. His office stated that "the governor has concerns about broad decriminalization of mushrooms." This mirrors his prior posture: Lamont championed cannabis legalization but resisted psilocybin decriminalization in earlier sessions. Whether HB 6380 or HB 7065 would receive his signature remained uncertain as of mid-2025.
Connecticut has a separate psychedelic policy track running alongside decriminalization: a state-funded clinical research program for psychedelic-assisted therapy.
In 2022, Connecticut created a psychedelic therapy pilot program for veterans, retired first responders, and direct health care workers with serious mental health needs. Gov. Lamont signed Senate Bill 191 in 2024 to expand that program, opening eligibility to any adult 18 or older who meets clinical criteria set by an institutional review board. The 2024 bill cleared the House 122–27 and passed the Senate 35–0.
This therapy program is a research model — participants receive psilocybin or MDMA-assisted therapy as part of an FDA-approved research protocol at a Connecticut medical school, not at a licensed public clinic. It is not a consumer access pathway. The therapy track and the decriminalization track operate entirely independently.
Researchers and mental health clinicians who testified in support of Connecticut's decrim bills generally argued that criminal penalties for personal possession create a chilling effect on people who might otherwise report adverse events or seek help. A person who has a difficult psilocybin experience is less likely to call 911 if doing so could result in arrest. Decriminalization removes that barrier without creating any new access channel.
Psilocybin remains a Schedule I controlled substance under the federal Controlled Substances Act, and Connecticut's state bill cannot change that. See our Controlled Substances Act guide for the full federal picture.
A state decrim law limits what state police and prosecutors can do. It does not limit federal agents, does not change federal employment or housing consequences, and does not affect federal background checks. Anyone in a federal job, military role, or federally subsidized housing faces the same federal risk regardless of what Connecticut's state law says.
For a full picture of where psilocybin stands across every state, see the legal status by state tool and our guide to legal psychedelics in the US.
Connecticut HB 6380 is a 2025 bill that would remove criminal penalties for personal psilocybin possession up to a defined threshold and replace them with a civil fine. It does not legalize psilocybin or create a therapy program — it is a narrow decriminalization measure.
No. Psilocybin is illegal in Connecticut. Under current law, possession is a misdemeanor carrying up to 364 days in jail and a $2,000 fine on a first offense. HB 6380 would reduce that to a civil infraction, but as of 2025 it has not been signed into law.
Under existing Connecticut law, psilocybin possession is a criminal offense. A first offense carries up to 364 days in jail and a fine up to $2,000. A second or subsequent offense can be charged as a Class E felony, punishable by up to three years in prison.
HB 6380 would make personal possession of psilocybin below a defined threshold a civil infraction rather than a crime. That means no arrest, no criminal record, and no jail time for qualifying personal possession. The bill also removes paraphernalia charges for items used to consume psilocybin.
Connecticut decriminalized cannabis in 2011 under the same logic — replacing criminal penalties with a $150 civil fine for possession of under half an ounce of marijuana. HB 6380 applies similar harm-reduction reasoning to psilocybin, mirroring the structure and threshold Connecticut used for cannabis more than a decade earlier.
Governor Lamont has expressed concerns about broad psilocybin decriminalization. His office stated the governor has concerns about decriminalizing mushrooms, though he signed a separate 2024 bill expanding Connecticut's psychedelic-assisted therapy pilot program for clinical research.
Our legalization tracker logs every psilocybin and psychedelic policy move across US states and other countries as it happens — with source links and plain-English summaries.
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