California Senate Bill 58 would legalize the cultivation, preparation, possession, and use of dimethyltryptamine, ibogaine, mescaline, and psilocybin or psilocyn in amounts reflecting personal use. Section 4 and Sec. 9 of the billwould also permit “[t]he assisting of another person, 21 years of age or older” to complete these tasks. In both cases, however, the language is constructed such that a person could not cultivate, harvest or prepare these substances in any amount exceeding the “allowable amounts,” which are the per-person possession limits.
This language is a key limitation of SB 58 because it would never allow anyone to specialize in the production of these substances so they could trade them with others. Both Section 4 and Sec. 9 nominally allow for the “facilitated or supported use” of these substances in supervised or group settings, but they also expressly forbid the transfer of these substances between adults for financial gain. Every individual who seeks to use these substances would be compelled to manufacture them independently, and in quantities that would not exceed possession limits.
While the legalization of these substances is a step in the right direction, these restrictions will result in a highly inefficient marketplace.
The full public comments submitted are here.