---
title: "Denver Is Voting on Whether to Decriminalize Psychedelic Mushrooms"
description: "Denver, Colorado, may soon decriminalize the personal use of psilocybin-containing mushrooms, making it the first place in the U.S. to consider doing so."
date: "2019-04-19"
modified: "2019-04-19"
authors:
  - name: "Dan Robitzski"
    link: "https://futurism.com/authors/danrobitzski"
url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/denver-voting-decriminalize-psychedelic-mushrooms"
categories:
  - "Future Society"
tags:
  - "drugs"
  - "health"
  - "the digest"
---

# Denver Is Voting on Whether to Decriminalize Psychedelic Mushrooms

![Denver, Colorado, may soon decriminalize the personal use of psilocybin-containing mushrooms, making it the first place in the U.S. to consider doing so.](<https://futurism.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/denver-voting-decriminalize-psychedelic-mushrooms.png>)
*\<em\>Image: 95C via Pixabay/Tag Hartman-Simkins\</em\>*

## Trip to the Polls

Denver, Colorado may become the first city in the U.S. to decriminalize shrooms — if a [new initiative](<https://ballotpedia.org/Denver,_Colorado,_Initiated_Ordinance_301,_Psilocybin_Mushroom_Initiative_(May_2019)>) gets voted through.

It's only one city, but the vote suggests that Americans are coming around to a more progressive view on recreational — and [potentially therapeutic](<https://futurism.com/neoscope/scientist-world-leaders-magic-mushrooms-mdma-medicines>) — psychoactive drugs.

## Changing Minds

If passed, Initiative 301 would decriminalize personal use and possession of mushrooms containing the psychoactive compound psilocybin. But wouldn't legalize the growth or distribution of the shrooms, [according to *Vox*](<https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/4/17/18412081/denver-psilocybin-magic-mushrooms-decriminalization-ballot-initiative>) — so it'd fall short of the full-throated legalization of marijuana that Colorado embraced in 2014.

Decriminalization of psychedelic shrooms could help Denver save time and money. Per *Vox*, other decriminalized areas like Portugal saw drops in drug use and drug-related deaths, suggesting that telling police to stop pursuing drug use could benefit society across the board.

**READ MORE:** [Denver may become the first US city to decriminalize psychedelic mushrooms](<https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/4/17/18412081/denver-psilocybin-magic-mushrooms-decriminalization-ballot-initiative>) \[*Vox*\]

**More on Psilocybin:** [*Psychedelic Mushrooms Can Boost Creativity and Empathy For a Week*](<https://futurism.com/neoscope/psychedelic-mushrooms-boost-creativity-empathy>)

## Author
Dan Robitzki is a senior reporter for Futurism, where he likes to cover AI, tech ethics, and medicine. He spends his extra time fencing and streaming games from Los Angeles, California.

### Author social links  
[Twitter](<https://x.com/danrobitzski>)