Are Magic Mushrooms Legal in Alaska? Psilocybin Laws (2026)

Alaska lists psilocybin and psilocyn as Schedule IIA controlled substances under AS 11.71.150(b)(18)-(19), reaching any material that contains any quantity of either, and possessing any amount is misconduct involving a controlled substance in the fifth degree, a class A misdemeanor under AS 11.71.050(a)(4); Alaska has no state psilocybin program, a 2024 task force has ended, and the 25ANMA natural medicine initiative is not law and is not on the November 3, 2026 ballot. For other states, see our guide to psilocybin mushroom laws by state.

Information last verified on 2026-10-11. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers Alaska state law on psilocybin and psilocyn: the Schedule IIA listing in AS 11.71.150, the offenses in AS 11.71.010 through 11.71.050 and the sentencing provisions in AS 12.55.035, 12.55.125 and 12.55.135, the controlled-substance clauses of the second-degree murder statute (AS 11.41.110), overdose reporting protection (AS 11.71.311), the federal-registration research route (AS 17.30.020), the emergency scheduling and federal-exemption provisions (AS 11.71.125, 11.71.195), the driving-under-the-influence statute (AS 28.35.030), the 2024 task force act and the 25ANMA initiative, with one paragraph on federal law. It does not cover city or borough ordinances, tribal law, employer or school policies, military rules or other states' laws.

Is psilocybin legal in Alaska?

No. Alaska lists psilocybin and psilocyn among the hallucinogenic substances in Schedule IIA. AS 11.71.150(b) provides:

"Schedule IIA includes, unless specifically excepted or unless listed in another schedule, any material, compound, mixture, or preparation which contains any quantity of the following hallucinogenic substances, or which contains any of its salts, isomers, whether optical, position, or geometric, or salts of isomers whenever the existence of these salts, isomers, or salts of isomers is possible within the specific chemical designation: ... (18) psilocybin; (19) psilocyn;"

The statute names the two compounds, not the mushrooms. Chapter 11.71 does not use the words "mushroom" or "spore." Its reach depends on whether a material "contains any quantity" of psilocybin or psilocyn, and this page does not draw a conclusion about any particular material, including spores.

The fifth-degree possession offense in AS 11.71.050(a) applies "Except as authorized in AS 17.30 and AS 17.38." Neither of those chapters mentions psilocybin or mushrooms.

What are the penalties for psilocybin in Alaska?

Alaska grades drug crimes as "misconduct involving a controlled substance" by degree. For Schedule IIA substances, the offenses attach to "any amount"; the chapter's aggregate-weight tier of one ounce is written for schedule VIA, not for psilocybin. The table shows the offenses that reach psilocybin and psilocyn.

The class B felony range comes from AS 12.55.125(d), under which a defendant "may be sentenced to a definite term of imprisonment of not more than 10 years," with a presumptive range "(1) if the offense is a first felony conviction and does not involve circumstances described in (2) of this subsection, one to three years." For a class C felony, subsection (e) sets a maximum of five years, with a presumptive range of zero to two years for a first felony conviction. The ranges for later felony convictions are set in other paragraphs of those subsections, and this page does not cover them.

If a death results, Alaska's murder statute can apply. Under AS 11.41.110(a)(6), a person who "knowingly manufactures or delivers a controlled substance in violation of AS 11.71.010 or 11.71.021, and another person dies as a direct result of ingestion of the controlled substance" commits murder in the second degree. Under AS 11.41.110(a)(3), a death of a person other than one of the participants, caused in the course of a first-degree offense under AS 11.71.010(a) or a manufacturing or delivery offense under AS 11.71.030(a)(9), among other listed offenses, can also be charged as murder in the second degree. For a charge under (a)(6), AS 11.41.110(b) provides an affirmative defense that reduces the crime to a class A felony if the defendant sought, in good faith, medical or law enforcement assistance for the other person, remained at the scene until help arrived, cooperated, including by providing identification, and the offense involved small quantities of a controlled substance that were not delivered for a profit.

Possession near schools and youth centers

The location tier in AS 11.71.030(a)(3) applies when a person "possesses any amount of a schedule IA or IIA controlled substance (A) with reckless disregard that the possession occurs (i) on or within 500 feet of school grounds; or (ii) at or within 500 feet of a recreation or youth center; or (B) on a school bus." The statute provides a defense limited to the 500-foot zones:

"(b) It is an affirmative defense to a prosecution under (a)(3)(A) of this section that the prohibited conduct took place entirely within a private residence located within 500 feet of the school grounds or recreation or youth center, and that the prohibited conduct did not involve distributing, dispensing, or possessing with the intent to distribute or dispense a controlled substance for profit."

Growing psilocybin mushrooms

Chapter 11.71 does not have a separate offense for mushrooms. The offense that addresses producing a Schedule IIA substance is manufacturing it, and AS 11.71.030(a)(9) makes manufacturing "any amount" a class B felony. The chapter defines "manufacture" to include the "propagation" and "growing" of a controlled substance and its production "by extraction from substances of natural origin" (AS 11.71.900(14)); its only growing exception is marijuana for personal use. Growing mushrooms that contain psilocybin or psilocyn can therefore be charged as manufacturing, a class B felony for any amount.

Overdose reporting protection

AS 11.71.311(a) provides limited immunity. A person "may not be prosecuted for a violation of AS 11.71.040(a)(3), (4), or (12), 11.71.050(a)(4) or (5), or 11.71.060(a)(1) or (2)" if the person "sought, in good faith, medical or law enforcement assistance for another person who the person reasonably believed was experiencing a drug overdose," the evidence was obtained or discovered as a result, the person stayed at the scene until help arrived, and the person cooperated, including by providing identification. The section also covers a person who was experiencing a drug overdose and sought medical assistance, when the evidence was obtained as a result of the overdose and the need for medical assistance (AS 11.71.311(a)(2)). The protection covers only those listed possession offenses, not manufacturing, delivery or possession with intent.

Is there a psilocybin program or task force in Alaska?

Alaska has no state program that permits psilocybin services. The one state body on the subject was temporary. House Bill 228, which created the Alaska task force for the regulation of psychedelic medicines approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration, became chapter 60, SLA 2024, as a law without the governor's signature, effective September 20, 2024, according to the bill record. The act set a report deadline and an end date for the task force it created:

"(f) The task force shall ... (2) on or before January 31, 2025, submit to the senate secretary, the chief clerk of the house of representatives, and the governor a report consisting of its recommendations, and notify the legislature that the report is available. (g) The task force terminates on the last day of the First Regular Session of the Thirty-Fourth Alaska State Legislature."

The task force did not change the schedules: psilocybin and psilocyn remain in AS 11.71.150(b). The task force approved its Final Recommendations Report by electronic vote on May 30, 2025 (the report is dated June 2025), and a February 4, 2026 Senate press release announced its release. The report's stated scope is the therapeutic use of FDA-approved psychedelic medicine. Its first recommendation is that "If and when psychedelic medicine therapies are FDA approved, the state should take action to allow for their use in Alaska, rather than prohibiting use," and it recommends that, upon FDA approval and DEA scheduling, the state follow federal scheduling "without adding duplicative or conflicting state rules." It took no position on whether an Oregon-style non-licensed facilitator model would be appropriate for Alaska. The recommendations are not law. No 2025-2026 bill on psilocybin, psychedelics or natural medicine became law.

Research with psilocybin

Alaska's research route runs through federal registration. AS 17.30.020(b) provides that "A person registered under federal law to manufacture, distribute, dispense, or conduct research with controlled substances in the state may possess, manufacture, distribute, dispense, or conduct research with those substances to the extent authorized by the person's registration and in conformity with the other provisions of this chapter."

The 25ANMA natural medicine initiative (not law)

On August 14, 2025, the Lieutenant Governor certified the application for a citizen initiative titled "25ANMA" (the Alaska Natural Medicine Act). The Division of Elections announcement said the initiative "will now proceed to the signature-gathering phase required for placement on a future ballot." As certified, the proposed bill would set up a state framework covering psilocybin, dimethyltryptamine (DMT), mescaline (excluding peyote) and ibogaine for adults aged 21 and older.

The initiative is not law, and it is not on the November 3, 2026 general election ballot: the Division of Elections' official election pamphlet for that election lists Ballot Measure 2 (24ESEG) and Ballot Measure 3 (25USCV) and no natural medicine measure. The Division's petitions page still lists 25ANMA as "Petition booklets circulating," with a petition booklet filing deadline of September 14, 2026. Under AS 15.45.140(b), a petition not filed within the one-year period "has no force or effect." Unless the law changes, the Schedule IIA listing and the penalties above apply.

This page does not cover any municipal resolution on psilocybin. State law applies throughout Alaska.

How federal changes could reach Alaska

Psilocybin is already in Alaska's statutory schedules, so the Attorney General's emergency power in AS 11.71.125(c), which applies "only if the substance is currently listed on a federal controlled substance schedule," is a tool for adding substances. Alaska has no provision that follows federal scheduling changes automatically.

A separate section, AS 11.71.195, provides: "Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, a substance the manufacture, distribution, dispensing, or possession of which is explicitly exempt from criminal penalty under federal law is exempt from the application of this chapter and AS 17.30." Federal law still lists psilocybin in Schedule I (below).

Federal psilocybin law

As of October 2026, psilocybin and psilocyn remain federal Schedule I hallucinogenic substances under 21 CFR 1308.11(d)(29)-(30), and simple possession of a controlled substance is a federal misdemeanor under 21 U.S.C. 844(a). No psilocybin drug product has FDA approval, and no DEA or HHS rescheduling notice for psilocybin appears in the Federal Register. Executive Order 14401 (April 2026) directs federal agencies to take steps that include a review of rescheduling, but it does not reschedule psilocybin. Federal law applies in Alaska regardless of state policy. Our psilocybin mushroom laws by state hub covers the federal layer in more detail.

Driving and criminal records

Alaska's driving-under-the-influence statute, AS 28.35.030(a)(1), covers driving or operating "while under the influence of an alcoholic beverage, intoxicating liquor, inhalant, or any controlled substance, singly or in combination." Psilocybin and psilocyn are Schedule IIA controlled substances, so that clause reaches them. The statute's chemical-test clause, (a)(2), sets a threshold of 0.08 percent or more by weight of alcohol in the blood and applies to alcohol. See our guide to Alaska DUI laws.

A psilocybin conviction is a criminal record. For how Alaska handles clearing or limiting access to records, see Alaska expungement laws.

The statute text on this page is quoted from the Alaska Legislature's online Alaska Statutes, which do not show an amendment history for each section. Chapter 9, SLA 2026 (House Bill 239), effective July 1, 2026, amended AS 11.41.110(a) and AS 12.55.125(b) and (d), and as of October 11, 2026 the online text of those subsections does not yet show it. The text quoted or summarized here from those subsections is as amended by chapter 9, SLA 2026; the amendments did not change the controlled-substance provisions described on this page.

Related

• Psilocybin mushroom laws by state
• Alaska DUI laws
• Alaska expungement laws
• Alaska kratom laws

This article provides general legal information about Alaska state law as of October 11, 2026. It is not legal advice. Ballot measures, legislation and federal actions can change the rules. For advice about a specific situation, contact a lawyer licensed in Alaska.

Last updated: 2026-10-11.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are magic mushrooms legal in Alaska?

Alaska lists psilocybin and psilocyn as Schedule IIA controlled substances under AS 11.71.150(b)(18)-(19), a listing that reaches any material containing any quantity of either, and possessing any amount is a class A misdemeanor under AS 11.71.050(a)(4). Alaska has no psilocybin program or decriminalization law.

What is the penalty for possessing psilocybin in Alaska?

Simple possession of any amount is misconduct in the fifth degree, a class A misdemeanor punishable by up to one year and a fine of up to $25,000. It becomes a class C felony if, within the preceding 10 years, the person was convicted of simple possession under AS 11.71.050(a)(4) or a similar law or ordinance in Alaska or another jurisdiction (AS 11.71.040(a)(12)), and a class B felony near a school, recreation or youth center or on a school bus.

Is selling psilocybin mushrooms a felony in Alaska?

Yes. Manufacturing or delivering any amount of a Schedule IIA substance, or possessing it with intent to manufacture or deliver, is a class B felony under AS 11.71.030(a)(9). Delivery to a person under 19 who is at least three years younger is an unclassified felony under AS 11.71.010(a)(2).

Are psilocybin mushroom spores legal in Alaska?

Alaska Statutes do not use the words mushroom or spore. The Schedule IIA listing covers any material, compound, mixture or preparation that contains any quantity of psilocybin or psilocyn, so the question turns on what a material contains.

Did Alaska decriminalize psilocybin?

No. The 25ANMA initiative, certified for signature gathering on August 14, 2025, is not law and is not on the November 3, 2026 ballot; its petition booklet filing deadline was September 14, 2026. Psilocybin's Schedule IIA listing is unchanged.

Does Alaska have a psilocybin task force?

House Bill 228 (chapter 60, SLA 2024) created a task force that was to report by January 31, 2025 and terminated on the last day of the First Regular Session of the Thirty-Fourth Legislature. Its final report, released February 4, 2026, made recommendations for psychedelic medicines approved by the FDA and did not change the law or the schedules.

Can I get a DUI for psilocybin in Alaska?

Yes. AS 28.35.030(a)(1) covers driving under the influence of any controlled substance, singly or in combination, and psilocybin and psilocyn are Schedule IIA controlled substances in Alaska.