House committee advances bill to add Amanita muscaria to controlled-substances schedule

The Utah House Health and Human Services Committee advanced House Bill 500 on a favorable recommendation after a brief presentation by the sponsor and a short statement from a state agriculture official.

Representative Brady Daley of Provo, sponsor of HB 500, told the committee the measure is "actually a very simple bill" to add Amanita muscaria, a psychotropic mushroom, to the state controlled substances database as a Schedule 3 listing and to clarify that references to the "Food and Drug Administration" mean the United States Food and Drug Administration.

Doctor Brandon Forsyth, director of the Specialized Products Division at the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food, told the committee the department has observed products marketed as containing Amanita muscaria for sale in smoke shops and small retailers and described them as "known to be psychotropic." Forsyth said the department is concerned about unregulated products "getting out into our communities" and supported the sponsor's action.

There were no public commenters and no committee amendments. Representative Fotisimonu moved to pass HB 500 with a favorable recommendation; the motion passed on a voice vote and was recorded by the chair as passing. Individual roll-call tallies were not specified on the transcript.

The bill text also includes a line-number clarification that explicitly identifies the federal agency meant by the bill's FDA reference. The sponsor waived further remarks after the motion, and the committee recorded the favorable recommendation.

Votes at a glance: The committee approved HB 500 on a favorable recommendation by voice vote; the transcript does not list individual yes/no votes or counts.

Next steps: The committee sent HB 500 forward with a favorable recommendation to the next House stage as recorded in committee minutes.