This will be one of the most important weeks for Oregon psilocybin to date, at least from a news and public information perspective. This is because we expect the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) to publish all remaining proposed administrative rules for the Oregon psilocybin program.
The forthcoming rules should cover everything outlined in Measure 109 and more, including open questions like whether licenses can be co-located (hopefully so), and whether licensed facilitators must be employees of psilocybin service centers (hopefully not). Those are just a few of many open issues where OHA is working to fill in gaps and codify the measure.
From our discussions last week with OHA, the proposed rules are already out for formatting, with a publication ETA of this Wednesday, August 31. Once the rules are published, we will take a week or so to digest everything. I expect we will begin publishing commentary here on the blog next week.
For now, I wanted to highlight this critical development, as well as a timeline of key events that may be beneficial for interested parties to calendar between now and January 2, 2023. Some of the dates and information below can be gleaned from Oregon Psilocybin Services’ (OPS) excellent program page. The rest we’ve cobbled together from various sources.
August 31, 2022 (tentative): Proposed OHA rules released
As a reminder, OHA already has released rules on select critical topics, back in April. We published helpful summaries with commentary on each set of those rules: training, testing and products.
This next batch will cover everything else under Measure 109, in 60+ pages of agency framework. Expect OHA to also publish a timeline for public comment on the proposed rules, prior to rules advisory committee (RAC) meetings (see below), and prior to any final revision and adoption by the full Oregon Psilocybin Advisory Board (OPAB).
View the US Map of Psilocybin Legality by State
September 12 – 30, 2022: RACs meet
Three RACs will soon be appointed to cover discrete sections of the pending rules. They are:
- Packaging, labeling and product transportation
- Licensing, facilities, and operations
- Facilitator conduct, preparation, administration and integration sessions
Each RAC will meet two or three times between September 12 and September 30. Expect to see a schedule published very soon. The application window to join any of these RACs already has passed, but meetings will be open to the public to observe. The public comment period will also remain open as the RACs are in session. Get your letters in.
September 15 – 18, 2022: Horizons Northwest
There are a few psilocybin events organized and scheduled around Oregon in the following months. I expect Horizons Northwest will be the best, even if it’s expensive and therefore sort of exclusive (which I expect to be an unfortunate theme of Oregon psilocybin going forward).
Anyway, this is a four-day conference designed by an experienced psychedelics events company. There will be ample information sharing and networking opportunities on offer at the Portland Art Museum in downtown Portland, Oregon.
September 16, 2022: Equity Subcommittee meeting
Open to the public to observe. Agenda to follow.
September 23, 2022: Oregon State Bar presentation
I’m throwing this one out there for our lawyer readers. Yours truly will present on the proposed rules and related topics along with Mason Marks, OPAB appointee, and Jesse Sweet, the primary drafter of the OHA psilocybin program rules. This panel will be moderated by Alex Berger of Emerge Law Group. We will reserve ample time for questions and answers, and CLE credit is available.
October 19, 2022: Fall Business Forum
This is a free, virtual, one-day event put on by OPS in conjunction with the Oregon Secretary of State. According to OPS:
Session topics throughout the day will cover important business considerations for starting up a business for licensure under M109, which may include cultivating psilocybin and/or processing psilocybin products, opening a service center, testing psilocybin products, developing a psilocybin facilitator training program, and/or becoming a facilitator.
October 27, 2022: Full meeting of OPAB
Open to the public to observe. Agenda to follow.
November 1 – 21, 2022: Updated rules, comment period
Updated rules based on September RAC input and public comment will be released. A new public comment period will open through November 21 for these updated, proposed rules.
November 8, 2022: Statewide elections
This is a critical date. Voters in certain cities and counties will decide whether or not to prohibit OHA licensed psilocybin businesses within their borders.
The August 19 deadline for placing an opt-out ballot measure has passed, thankfully. We explained how all of that works here. You can review a useful opt-out tracker here.
December 9, 2022: Full meeting of OPAB
Open to the public to observe. Agenda to follow.
December 30, 2022: Final rules adopted
Deadline for OPAB / OHA to adopt all final Oregon psilocybin program rules, if not already accomplished. The final Oregon psilocybin program rules will take effect this date. Whatever is adopted, you should expect to see the Oregon legislature and OHA mess around with the program for years.
January 2, 2023: OHA accepts license applications
OHA, through OPS, begins accepting applications for licensure right after New Year. You can expect the application materials and any relevant guidance to be published sometime ahead of this, probably in December.
Contact us anytime between now and then to get a jump on things. We are entering the home stretch.
