NH House Passes Bills to Legalize Marijuana, Decriminalize Psilocybin

The New Hampshire House of Representatives has approved bills to legalize marijuana, decriminalize the use and possession of psilocybin by adults and double the amount of medical cannabis that state-registered patients can purchase and possess.

On the morning of March 26, members voted in favor of HB 198, from Representative Jared Sullivan (D), which would allow adults 21 and older to possess up to 2 ounces of marijuana flower, 10 grams of concentrate and up to 2,000 milligrams of THC in other cannabis products.

Retail sales of marijuana products, along with home cultivation, would remain illegal. Consuming marijuana on public land would also be prohibited.

“It is 2025. Let’s stop arresting people and ruining their lives for possession of cannabis.”

The legislation cleared the chamber in a vote of 208-125.

“It is 2025. Let’s stop arresting people and ruining their lives for possession of cannabis, something that many states in the country have already legalized,” Sullivan said ahead of the vote.

He noted that there seems to be a consensus that cannabis should be legal, even as there is lingering disagreement on how to regulate a market for sales.

“Once we get it legal, we can continue to have that debate. That seems to be where the sticking points [are]: Do we want it to be a private, industry-based model? Do we want to be a state-run model?” he said. “These things are where we’re getting kind of caught up in the weeds, and it seems like most people agree that we should legalize it.”

The House on March 26 also passed HB 528, from Rep. Kevin Verville (R), which in its current form would lessen the state’s penalties around psilocybin.

Under the plan, a first psilocybin charge would be a violation, subject to a fine of $100 or less.

Second and third psilocybin charges, meanwhile, would be class B misdemeanors, carrying fines of up to $500 and $1,000, respectively, but with no risk of jail time. Fourth and subsequent charges would remain classified as felonies.

Sales and distribution of the substance would still be illegal, as the reform would apply only to “a person 18 years of age or older who obtains, purchases, transports, possesses, or uses psilocybin.”

As originally introduced, the legislation would have completely removed penalties around obtaining, purchasing, transporting, possessing or using psilocybin, effectively legalizing it on a noncommercial basis. However a House committee amended the bill before unanimously advancing it earlier in March.

“This bipartisan, common-sense legislation will end the decades-long terror of becoming a felon for possession of mushrooms. Our fight is far from over.”

Verville told Marijuana Moment that the House’s passage of his psilocybin bill is “an historic, albeit small first step on our journey to correct 60 years of demonstrably failed policy on psychedelics.”

“This bipartisan, common-sense legislation will end the decades-long terror of becoming a felon for possession of mushrooms that grow naturally in New Hampshire, North America, and across the globe,” he said. “Our fight is far from over. Our attention will now turn to the NH Senate, in hopes of having them concur with the position of the House, and then beseech our governor to allow the bill to pass into law.”

House lawmakers on March 26 also approved HB 190, from Rep. Heath Howard (D), which would increase the possession limit of medical marijuana by patients and caregivers, raising it to 4 ounces from the current two. Existing 10-day patient purchase limits would also increase from 2 ounces up to four.

The psilocybin and medical cannabis expansion bills were passed as part of the chamber’s consent calendar without floor debate and were not given roll-call votes. All three House-passed reform bills now proceed to the Senate for consideration.

Another cannabis-related proposal, meanwhile, is set for action in the House in the coming days: HB 380, from Rep. Suzanne Vail (D)—to adjust penalties around sales of medical cannabis to people who are not qualifying patients or caregivers.

It’s widely believed that New Hampshire Governor Kelly Ayotte (R) would stand in the way of any adult-use legalization bill that were to make it to her desk this session, however.

On March 25, a Senate committee took testimony on four other House-passed bills related to cannabis, among them plans around medical homegrow, annulment of past convictions, adult-use legalization and allowing existing dispensaries buy commercial hemp cannabinoids.

It’s widely believed that New Hampshire Governor Kelly Ayotte (R) would stand in the way of any adult-use legalization bill that were to make it to her desk this session, however. A former United States senator and state attorney general, Ayotte said repeatedly on the 2024 campaign trail that she would oppose efforts at adult-use legalization.

New Hampshire lawmakers nearly passed legislation last session to legalize and regulate marijuana for adults—a proposal that then-Gov. Chris Sununu (R) had indicated he’d support. But infighting over how the market would be set up ultimately scuttled that proposal. House Democrats narrowly voted to table it at the last minute, taking issue with the proposal’s state-controlled franchise model, which would have given the state unprecedented sway over retail stores and consumer prices.

A June 2024 poll found that almost two thirds (65 percent) of New Hampshire residents supported legalizing marijuana. Nearly that same share of residents (61 percent) said at the time that they also supported last session’s failed legalization bill, HB 1633.

Photograph of New Hampshire State House by Ken Lund via Flickr/Creative Commons 2.0

This story was originally published by Marijuana Moment, which tracks the politics and policy of cannabis and drugs. Follow Marijuana Moment on X and Facebook, and sign up for its newsletter.