The NJ Assembly Health Committee amended a psilocybin or medical shrooms industry legalization bill and passed a bill mandating the NJ Cannabis Regulatory Commission (NJCRC) regulate Delta-8 and other hemp products.
Growing & Justice Eliminated From Medical Shrooms Legalization
The legislation A 3852 on psilocybin or magic mushrooms or medical shrooms industry legalization was heard first by the committee.
They followed the NJ State Senate and eliminated the right to home grow as well as addressing those hurt by the thing they want to create an industry around.
“We’re not doing anything with respect to decriminalization or expungement in this bill or home grow,” Chair Herb Conaway (D-7) explained.
“We want to provide for a narrow set of conditions in a medicalized way headed by licensed physicians and allied professionals who are well trained and certified to provide this therapeutic pathway,” he declared.
Sound Mind Institute Founder Dr. Hannah McLane explained she has been looking for more effective methods of treatment. She said the New England Journal of Medicine featured a study on psilocybin that showed it was very effective.
Conaway noted they want to establish a commission to determine conditions to qualify a patient for treatment, like PTSD, and chronic depression.
McLane said a synthetic version of medical psilocybin is in the process of a pharmaceutical clinical trial.
Medicalizing Magic Mushrooms Via Big Pharma
Conaway wanted to see if cops could be treated with medical psilocybin or magic mushrooms.
“A lot probably won’t get treatment,” McLane noted. “They’re afraid of losing their job and afraid to lose access to carrying their gun. It’s a big problem.”
She said their treatment is supervised, unlike in a dispensary.
“Mushrooms are very easy to grow,” McLane added.
She said the legal drug process takes a while.
“We’re looking at five to 10 years,” McLane said.
She noted the need to treat to treat PTSD sooner than later.
“We’re talking about a breakthrough medication here,” Conaway said.
McLane argued that traditional talk therapy often does not get to the heart of the trauma that causes so many issues for people.
“It’s going to be a highly regulated situation,” Conaway argued regarding his vision of the New Jersey medical psilocybin industry.
Dosing Medical Psilocybin Questions
“How do you determine the dosing?” Assemblywoman Nancy Munoz (R-21) asked.
McLane said some strains of magic mushrooms or medical shrooms have different strengths, which they test to determine.
“Can this be mixed with other anti-depressant medications?” bill sponsor Assemblywoman Shanique Speight (D-29) asked.
McLane said if you’re on an anti-depressant, it decreases the healing from medical shrooms.
“How do you determine what each individual gets? “How long does it say in your system?” Speight asked.
“It will be like 2 to 5 grams,” McLane replied.
She added Big Pharma is wary of natural medicine and wants to control the lengthy process.
Cannabis Advocates Angry At Lack of Justice
Jesse Villars of the Baked by the River dispensary also testified in favor of medical psilocybin.
“If we legalize psilocybin in this state, it would be wrong to continue punishing patients for using psilocybin in the past,” she added.
“Cannabis patients were told 15 years ago the price would come down. It’s come down, but it’s nowhere near affordable,” advocate Jim Miller of the Coalition of Medical Marijuana of NJ (CMMNJ) and Sativa Cross declared.
“Stick to psilocybin,” Conaway grumbled.
“This psilocybin bill is really hurting cannabis patient’s mental health because it is really jumping over them and over an issue that has been stalled,” Miller argued.
He noted they removed psilocybin or medical shrooms home grow the way they removed medical cannabis home grow from medical cannabis legalization in 2009.
“You took it out in a compromise,” Miller noted. “We don’t know why.”
“I think we’re done,” Conaway exclaimed angrily.
“We’ve been done since 2009,” Miller replied.
The committee then passed the medical psilocybin industry legalization amendments.
“The bill is not released but rather amended,” Conaway noted.
It still has to pass the committee to advance to a full vote by the Assembly. It also needs to pass the State Senate and be signed by the Governor to become law.
NJ Delta Hemp Regulation Bill Passes
The NJ Assembly Health Committee then passed the bill A 4461 to have the NJCRC regulate Delta-8 and other hemp-derived products.
Conaway explained many are unhappy those 21 and under can buy such products fairly easily.
“This bill attempts to address that public safety concern,” he added.
Conaway noted regulation often leads to new sorts of products via loopholes which then must be addressed.
Susana P. Short of the NJ Cannabis Equity Association (NJCEA), formerly of the NJ Cannabis Trade Association (NJCTA), which represents the large corporate Multi-State Operator (MSOs) and few independents, then spoke. She was against hemp drinks sold at liquor stores and said she has many clients as a consultant who agree.
Protecting Profits for Social Equity
“Unregulated hemp intoxicants have been identified as one of the biggest threats to the viability of the regulated industry,” Short declared. “Our success is being severely limited by these other products.”
“We comply with regulations around labeling and childproof packaging,” Short explained regarding the industry.
“People have spent millions of dollars, drained college savings and retirement accounts, put their lives on hold to invest everything in these regulated canna-businesses,” she exclaimed. “It’s inequitable to allow others to sell the same toxicant without the same barriers to entry.”
Short believed that Delta hemp drinks should be sold in licensed dispensaries only.
Delta-8 Hemp Loopholes and Problems
Munoz asked the difference between cannabis and hemp.
Short explained the 2018 Farm Bill defined hemp as having less than 0.3 percent Delta-9 THC, the thing in cannabis that gets you high.
“There’s a bit of a loophole that’s been exploited by what I will call bad actors,” she exclaimed.
Short noted there are many cannabinoids in hemp.
“It could have a high amount of THCA, another component. Once it’s burnt, it converts into THC,” she explained.
Thus, Congress didn’t know to exclude THCA and similar cannabinoids like Delta-8 THC. Delta-9 THC specifically is what they banned only.
Delta hemp products are largely produced outside and brought to New Jersey SS noted.
Leading New Jersey cannabis advocate Bill Caruso said Congressional gridlock makes progress doubtful on the new Farm Bill, which bans Delta hemp products.
“New Jersey has created an unbelievable market. We said we were gonna make sure it was safe and tested,” he explained.
Fighting Liquor Industry Exception/Carveout
“That’s a conversation about a different bill,” Caruso said about allowing liquor stores to keep selling Delta hemp drinks.
NJ Cannabusiness Association (NJCBA) President Scott Rudder was also in favor of the bill. He noted they bought Delta hemp vapes and tested them.
“Nothing in the ingredients matched the label,” Rudder declared.
Todd Johnson of the NJCTA also testified in favor of it, echoing the sentiments of the others.
Delta Hemp Store Defense
Patrick Simpson of CBD of Newton said they have a chain of stores employing 20 people.
“We’ve earned a very respectable reputation in the industry,” he said.
Simpson explained they do not sell to children. He added they only sell products that have been lab-tested. Simpson wanted the Department of Agriculture to regulate hemp stores instead of the NJCRC.
Advocate and attorney Brett Goldman also opposed the bill. He said the delta hemp industry is a $20 billion-dollar national market, bigger than legal cannabis possibly.
Alcohol Industry Speaks Out
Eric Orlando of the Brewers Association wants his members to be able to get NJCRC licenses to manufacture cannabis beverages.
“We are advocating for a low dose carveout for THC,” Michael Halfacre of the Beer Wholesalers Association explained. “At least 5 milligrams. At least 7 states have done that.”
Conaway was intrigued by the Minnesota liquor store Delta-8 hemp carveout.
Other beer and liquor lobbyists testified in favor of their carveout.
The committee then passed it 6-2 without conceding a carveout to the liquor industry.
