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Are magic mushrooms legal in several California cities?

Unclear

Still illegal. Several city councils have made personal use a low enforcement priority; how binding this is varies by city.

A handful of California cities have adopted resolutions asking police to treat adult personal use of entheogenic plants and fungi as a low or lowest priority: Oakland in June 2019, Santa Cruz in January 2020 (replaced by a revised resolution in September 2021), Arcata in October 2021 (declared not a public safety priority, with limited city funds still used where other code violations such as public disturbance, driving under the influence or use in front of minors are present), San Francisco in September 2022 (urging language only) and Berkeley in July 2023 (personal possession and home cultivation only, sharing excluded). These are city policy statements; they do not change state or federal law and do not bind county prosecutors, the state or federal agencies. Psilocybin remains federally Schedule I, and no state psychedelics measure is on the November 2026 California ballot.

Last verified against primary sources:

What is and is not allowed

Possession
Oakland and Berkeley direct that city resources not be used, or be de-emphasised, to enforce criminal penalties for adult personal possession; San Francisco only urges law enforcement to deprioritise it. State and federal possession offences are unchanged.
Cultivation
Oakland's resolution names planting and cultivating among lowest priorities; Berkeley covers cultivation and preparation for the grower's own use only; San Francisco urges the same.
Sale and supply
Berkeley expressly does not cover giving away, sharing, distributing or selling; Oakland and San Francisco deprioritise 'distributing' in their wording but do not authorise commercial sale, which remains a state and federal crime.
Recent changes
No psychedelics measure is among the qualified measures for California's 3 November 2026 statewide ballot, per the California Secretary of State.

Governing law

Oakland Resolution 87731 C.M.S. (4 June 2019); Santa Cruz Resolution NS-29,623 (28 Jan 2020), replaced by Resolution NS-29,867 (14 Sept 2021); Arcata Resolution 212-17 (6 Oct 2021); San Francisco Board of Supervisors Resolution 379-22, File 220896 (6 Sept 2022); Berkeley Resolution 70,962-N.S. (11 July 2023)

Check before you act. This page is a reference, not legal advice. Drug law changes, and local rules can differ from national ones. Contested, exempted in part, or unevenly enforced. Read the primary source below before relying on it.

Common questions

Are magic mushrooms legal in Oakland, San Francisco or Berkeley?

No. These cities passed resolutions deprioritising enforcement against adult personal use, but psilocybin remains illegal under California and federal law.

Can I share or sell mushrooms in Berkeley?

No. Berkeley's 2023 resolution says it does not authorise giving away, sharing, distributing or transferring psychedelics to anyone else.

Is California legalising psilocybin in 2026?

Not via the ballot: the Secretary of State's list of measures qualified for 3 November 2026 contains no psychedelics measure.

Sources

  1. [1]Oakland City Council Resolution 87731 C.M.S. (2019)
  2. [2]Oakland Legistar record, File 18-1790 (City Resolution, passed 4 June 2019)
  3. [3]Santa Cruz City Council agenda report, 14 Sept 2021 (records passage of Resolution NS-29,623 on 28 Jan 2020 and proposes its replacement)
  4. [4]Santa Cruz City Council action agenda, 14 Sept 2021 (Resolution NS-29,867 adopted, rescinding NS-29,623)
  5. [5]Arcata Resolution No. 212-17, adopted 6 October 2021 (City of Arcata)
  6. [6]San Francisco Board of Supervisors Resolution 379-22, File No. 220896
  7. [7]Berkeley City Council 11 July 2023 Item 35 supplemental (revised resolution text)
  8. [8]Berkeley City Council 11 July 2023 annotated agenda (adopted Resolution No. 70,962-N.S.)
  9. [9]California Secretary of State, qualified statewide ballot measures
  10. [10]21 U.S.C. 812 (psilocybin and psilocyn, Schedule I)

Other places in North America

All jurisdictions