The Colorado Department of Revenue’s Natural Medicine Division held a last rulemaking meeting on October 21 to finalize its proposed Natural Medicine License application and compliance fee process for Coloradans who are interested in operating natural medicine facilities.
Colorado voters decriminalized psilocybin, the component that makes magic mushrooms “magical,” in November 2022; the DOR set up the Natural Medicine Division in 2023 to establish the process for licensing and regulating psilocybin production and sales, including application and compliance fees.
The NMD held its first rulemaking hearing regarding fees on September 16, and then reworked its proposal to deal with some of the feedback. Among other things, it clarified when fees would be due. According to Kyle Lambert, NMD's Senior deputy director, application fees will be due when the application is completed, and the license compliance fee will be due when the license is approved. At the October 21 meeting, he noted that the license compliance fee only applies to the initial license application.
Lambert also noted that micro healing and standard healing fees have been reduced by $100 to $200 from the initial proposal, and the fee for extraction endorsement was also reduced.
Several speakers advocated for the division to prioritize lowering fees associated with micro healing centers and cultivation applications and licenses, which are smaller scaled psilocybin facilities. CU Boulder law school student Olivia Visio suggested introducing a sole proprietor license, which could bring more money into the division and alleviate some of the higher fees associated with micro healing efforts.
The NMD will now make additional revisions to the draft based on community suggestions and comments, then submit the finalized record and proposed rules to the state licensing committee for consideration. In the meantime, it will be holding more events for public engagement. On October 30, the NMD is sponsoring a roundtable discussion with local partners; on November 12, it will hold an interested applicant forum, followed by an informal networking event.
At the end of the October 21 meeting, NMD senior director Dominique Mendiola thanked the community members who participated in the hearing. Members of the community also praised the Natural Medicine Division team, thanking them for listening to their feedback and adjusting fees based on previous input.“Where we landed is a lot better than where we started,” said community member Joshua Kappel, who encouraged the division to continue having conversations about pricing and programs with the public.
