City takes first step on psilocybin ballot question
By Terry Murry on Thursday, July 21st, 2022 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
PENDLETON – The Pendleton City Council will hold a public hearing and vote on placing an initiative on the November ballot that would prevent psilocybin services in the city. A similar measure has already been approved by Umatilla County, and one is also before the Hermiston City Council.
There were 64 percent of voters in Umatilla County that opposed the move to legalize the use of the hallucinogen when it was on the ballot in 2020, but it passed the state. Now, in order to prevent services from opening cities and counties must vote again to ban such operations.
“It can only be voted on in even-numbered years, so if we didn’t take action now, we’d have to wait until 2024,” Mayor John Turner said. “By that time frame, perhaps treatment centers would have already sprouted up.”
The state is not charging taxes to psilocybin service providers, so there would be no direct benefit to the city if it did allow the operations, unlike marijuana operations. Under the new law, a client will be able to purchase, consume and experience the effects of psilocybin only at a service center under the supervision of a facilitator. They will not be sold to-go.
The Oregon Health Authority is still working on the rules that will govern the use and is expected to have completed that by the end of this year.
