At a recent meeting of Boulder County’s Substance Use Advisory Group, or SUAG, experts shared three bills they’re keeping eyes on this state legislative session — along with a constrained budget advocates worry will impact funding for substance use prevention, treatment and harm reduction.
“There’s likely to be a priority to preserve mental health funding, but not substance abuse,” said Jose Esquibel, associate director of the Colorado Consortium for Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention, of the proposed legislation. “We are in defensive mode.”
The world is watching drugs evolve along two major but converging fronts: the approval and mainstream acceptance of psychedelics as medicine, and the ongoing addiction and overdose crisis. Or at least Coloradans are. State lawmakers have introduced drug-related legislation to address these simultaneous phenomena.
Here are four up for consideration in 2025.
HB-1063: FDA-Approved Crystalline Polymorph Psilocybin Use
Sponsored by: Rep. Kyle Brown, D12; Rep. Anthony Hartsook, D44; Sen. Dafna Michaelson Jenet, D21
Status: Referred to the House floor; hearing TBD.
Perhaps the most widely covered bill, HB-1063 would legalize a form of synthetic psilocybin as a prescription medicine in Colorado if and when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approves it for medical use.
The synthetic is patented by U.K. pharmaceutical company Compass Pathways, who spoke in support of HB-1063 at the Colorado Legislature, according to CPR.
But, as CPR reported, “no one’s quite sure how far along the FDA is in approving synthetic psilocybin.”
The bill was passed to the House floor by a 12-1 vote of the Health and Human Services Committee.
SB-044: Synthetic Opiates Criminal Penalty
Sponsored by: Sen. Byron Pelton, D1; Rep. Ryan Armagost, D64
Upcoming action: Senate Judiciary Hearing, 1:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 10
In 2022, Colorado enacted harsher criminal penalties for the sale, distribution or possession of fentanyl, a move decried by advocates and health officials for criminalizing addiction.
The 2022 law made it a felony to have or sell four grams or more of fentanyl, about 10 pills. SB-044 goes further by removing that threshold, meaning possessing any amount of fentanyl or “any material, compound, mixture, or preparation that contains fentanyl” would be an automatic felony.
Crucially, it would also repeal judicial leniency if the accused did not know their drugs contained fentanyl — a provision included because of the proliferation of drugs laced with fentanyl.
It’s unclear what chance SB-044, sponsored by two Republican lawmakers, has of passing the Democrat-controlled Senate and House; similar efforts were unsuccessful in 2022 and 2024.
A group is trying to place a similar measure on the ballot for a public vote, Esquibel said. Regardless of whether that or SB-044 pass or fail, Esquibel is troubled by the rhetoric around criminalization.
“I’ve seen testimony of parents begging for their kids to be arrested because they think that’s the only way to get them help,” he said. “We have to show folks that treatment can work, that there’s other ways to serve people and not do it through fear and punishment.”
HB-1002: Medical Necessity Determination Insurance Coverage
Sponsored by: Rep. Brown, Sen. Pelton; Sen. Judy Amabile, D18; Rep. Lindsay Gilchrist, D8
Upcoming action: Senate Health & Human Services hearing, 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 29
Amabile addressed this bill in her legislative preview for Boulder Weekly. The bill “mandates that private health insurers provide coverage for mental health and substance abuse disorders based on a determination of medical necessity by a qualified medical professional, not by the insurer,” she wrote.
It specifically calls out benefits and treatment for substance use disorder, for which insurance plans coverage must be “no less extensive than the coverage provided for any physical illness.”
SB-042: Behavioral Health Crisis Response Recommendations
Sponsored by: Sen. Amabile; Rep. Mary Bradfield, D21; Sen. Lisa Cutter, D20
Upcoming action: Senate Health & Human Services hearing, Wednesday, Feb. 5; hearing will begin once the legislature has adjourned for the day.
Another Amabile bill, SB-042 requires the Department of Public Safety and Behavioral Health administration to analyze and present information on behavioral health models and resources throughout the state, including co-responder, alternative and mobile response programs that do not require police response to mental health emergencies.
The information will be collected throughout 2025 and made publicly available online. An analysis of gaps and funding options will be presented to lawmakers by 2027.
The bill also includes stipulations for the evaluation and release of individuals detained for mental health emergencies.