{"id":53062,"date":"2021-02-22T17:00:47","date_gmt":"2021-02-22T17:00:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/merryjane.com\/massachusetts-and-vermont-are-trying-to-legalize-psychedelics-and-decriminalize-drugs\/"},"modified":"2021-02-22T17:00:47","modified_gmt":"2021-02-22T17:00:47","slug":"massachusetts-and-vermont-are-trying-to-legalize-psychedelics-and-decriminalize-drugs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/merryjane.com\/culture\/massachusetts-and-vermont-are-trying-to-legalize-psychedelics-and-decriminalize-drugs\/","title":{"rendered":"Massachusetts and Vermont Are Trying to Legalize Psychedelics and Decriminalize Drugs"},"content":{"rendered":"

On Election Day 2020, Oregon made history by becoming the first state to decriminalize the possession of all drugs<\/u><\/a> and legalize psilocybin-assisted therapy<\/u><\/a>. This inspiring move has convinced lawmakers all across the country that now is the time to put an end to the War on Drug<\/a>s<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Last Friday, Massachusetts lawmakers introduced two separate bills designed to phase out prohibition once and for all<\/u><\/a>. The first of these bills, officially titled \u201cAn Act Relative to Harm Reduction and Racial Justice,\u201d would decriminalize the possession of any drug, reducing criminal penalties to a simple $50 fine. Anyone busted with drugs would also have the option to enroll in a public health screening program instead of paying the fine. <\/p>\n

The second bill, HD 3829, would establish a 21-person task force to research the feasibility of creating a taxed and regulated sales market for psychedelic drugs. If passed, the bill would require the task force to submit a report on \u201cthe public health and social justice implications of legalizing the possession, consumption, transportation, and distribution of naturally cultivated entheogenic plants and fungi\u201d by June of 2022, Marijuana Moment<\/em><\/u> reports<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n