Lieutenant Governor Dahlstrom Certifies Ballot Initiative Application to Regulate Natural Medicines

(Anchorage, AK) — Lieutenant Governor Nancy Dahlstrom today certified a statewide initiative application proposing the regulated use of certain natural medicines for therapeutic and traditional purposes. The initiative, titled “25ANMA,” will now proceed to the signature-gathering phase required for placement on a future ballot.  

The proposed bill would establish a comprehensive framework for the legal access, cultivation, and use of natural medicines—including psilocybin, dimethyltryptamine (DMT), mescaline (excluding peyote), and ibogaine—for adults aged 21 and older. It also recognizes and protects traditional and indigenous uses of these substances.  

“This certification reflects the constitutional and statutory requirements for citizen-led initiatives in Alaska,” said Lieutenant Governor Dahlstrom. “While voters will ultimately decide the merits of the proposal, the application meets all legal criteria for form and content.”  

If enacted, the initiative would:  
-Create a Natural Medicine Control Board to oversee licensing, regulation, and public education;
-Establish a Traditional Use Council to support cultural and spiritual practices;
-Decriminalize personal possession, cultivation, and non-commercial sharing of certain natural medicines;
-Authorize licensed facilities and facilitators to provide therapeutic services;
-Protect certified traditional practitioners and their clients from criminal penalties.  

The Alaska Department of Law reviewed the application and found it consistent with constitutional and statutory requirements.  

Sponsors of the initiative may now begin collecting signatures from qualified voters. To qualify for the ballot, the initiative must gather signatures equal to 10 percent of the votes cast in the last general election, distributed across at least three-quarters of Alaska’s House districts.  

For more information on the initiative process, visit the Division of Elections website at elections.alaska.gov
##   Media Contact: Office of the Lieutenant Governor Email: lt.governor@alaska.gov Phone: (907) 465-3520