Yes, mushrooms containing psilocybin are illegal in Texas. State law puts psilocybin and psilocin in Penalty Group 2 of the Texas Controlled Substances Act, which makes every possession, cultivation, or sale offense a felony, with no exemption for personal use and no distinction between wild and cultivated mushrooms.1Texas Legislature. Bill Analysis SB 1868 89R
What the Law Actually Covers
Chapter 481 of the Texas Health and Safety Code lists psilocybin and psilocin as Penalty Group 2 controlled substances, the same tier as MDMA and mescaline. The statute doesn’t just reach the isolated chemicals. It applies to any material containing those compounds, so the mushrooms themselves are the controlled substance. Foraged or home-grown, fresh or dried, in a jar or in a sandwich bag, the material is treated the same way under state law.
Why Wet Weight Changes Everything
Texas sets the severity of a psilocybin charge based on “aggregate weight, including adulterants or dilutants.”2State of Texas. Texas Code Health and Safety Code 481.113 – Offense: Manufacture or Delivery of Substance in Penalty Group 2 or 2-A Fresh mushrooms are roughly 90 percent water, and all that water counts. A handful of fresh mushrooms that would weigh half a gram dried can tip the scale at five grams wet, pushing the same person from a state jail felony into second-degree felony territory. Prosecutors don’t dry the evidence before weighing it, and the weight recorded by law enforcement at the scene is the weight that drives the charge.
Possession Penalties by Weight
Any amount of psilocybin is a felony in Texas. The weight brackets are:
- Less than one gram: state jail felony, 180 days to two years in a state jail and a fine up to $10,000.
- One to four grams: third-degree felony, two to ten years in prison and a fine up to $10,000.
- Four to 400 grams: second-degree felony, two to 20 years in prison and a fine up to $10,000.3State of Texas. Texas Penal Code 12.33 – Second Degree Felony Punishment
- 400 grams or more: first-degree felony, five to 99 years or life in prison and a fine up to $10,000.
Because of the wet-weight rule, a small personal stash of fresh mushrooms can land in the four-to-400-gram bracket quickly.
Growing or Selling: One Degree Higher
Cultivating psilocybin mushrooms counts as manufacturing a controlled substance, and Texas punishes manufacturing and delivery one felony level above simple possession at each weight tier:
- Less than one gram: state jail felony, 180 days to two years.
- One to four grams: second-degree felony, two to 20 years.2State of Texas. Texas Code Health and Safety Code 481.113 – Offense: Manufacture or Delivery of Substance in Penalty Group 2 or 2-A
- Four to 400 grams: first-degree felony, five to 99 years or life.2State of Texas. Texas Code Health and Safety Code 481.113 – Offense: Manufacture or Delivery of Substance in Penalty Group 2 or 2-A
- 400 grams or more: enhanced first-degree felony with a mandatory minimum of 10 years, up to 99 years or life, and a fine up to $100,000.2State of Texas. Texas Code Health and Safety Code 481.113 – Offense: Manufacture or Delivery of Substance in Penalty Group 2 or 2-A
A home grow producing a few flushes of fresh mushrooms can clear 400 grams of wet weight without much trouble, which is what makes the top tier so dangerous for cultivators: a mandatory ten years and a six-figure fine.
Spores and Grow Kits
Spores occupy a gray area. The spores themselves don’t contain psilocybin or psilocin, so possessing them is not a controlled substance offense. Grow kits sold without spores are also legal to own. The offense begins the moment spores meet substrate with intent to produce psilocybin-containing mushrooms, which brings the activity under the manufacturing provisions of Section 481.113.
Prosecutors don’t need a finished harvest. Inoculated substrates, cultivation gear, grow logs, or mushrooms at any stage of development are enough to build a manufacturing case.
Consequences That Outlast the Sentence
A psilocybin felony carries collateral consequences that apply even if you receive probation.
Driver’s License
A final conviction for any controlled substance offense under the Health and Safety Code triggers an automatic 90-day driver’s license suspension, regardless of whether a vehicle was involved.4State of Texas. Texas Transportation Code 521.372 – Suspension or License Denial If you don’t have a license at the time of conviction, you can’t get one during the suspension period.
Firearms
Anyone convicted of a felony in Texas cannot possess a firearm for at least five years after completing the sentence, including parole or probation. After that, firearm possession is allowed only inside your own home. Possessing one anywhere else is itself a third-degree felony.5State of Texas. Texas Penal Code 46.04 – Unlawful Possession of Firearm
Professional Licensing
The Texas Occupations Code requires the Texas Medical Board to suspend a physician’s license on conviction of a felony under Chapter 481, with mandatory revocation after a final conviction.6State of Texas. Texas Occupations Code Chapter 108 – License Suspension or Revocation Required Nurses, pharmacists, dentists, psychologists, and physical therapists face similar exposure, and any license that depends on a background check will be affected.
Austin’s Decriminalization Vote Doesn’t Change State Law
In 2021, Austin voters passed Proposition A, directing local law enforcement to treat enforcement of laws on psychedelic plants and fungi as the lowest priority. It was the first such measure in Texas and has reduced the chance of prosecution for small personal amounts in Travis County. But it did not change state law. Psilocybin possession remains a felony statewide, and state agencies are not bound by the city’s policy. A Texas state trooper or Texas Ranger can arrest you for psilocybin anywhere in the state, Austin included. No other Texas city has passed a similar ordinance.
Amanita Muscaria Is a Different Story
Not every psychoactive mushroom carries the same risk. Amanita muscaria, the red-and-white spotted mushroom, is not listed in any Texas penalty group because its active compounds, muscimol and ibotenic acid, are chemically distinct from psilocybin. Possessing it is not currently a controlled substance offense in Texas.
That may change. Senate Bill 1868, introduced in the 89th Legislature in 2025, would create a new Chapter 491 of the Health and Safety Code covering hallucinogenic plants and fungi, with Amanita muscaria and Amanita pantherina in its definition of “hallucinogenic substance.”7Texas Legislature Online. 89R SB 1868 – Introduced Version – Bill Text Under the bill, possession would be a Class B misdemeanor and production or sale a state jail felony.1Texas Legislature. Bill Analysis SB 1868 89R
Federal Charges Can Apply Too
Psilocybin and psilocin are Schedule I controlled substances under the federal Controlled Substances Act.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 21 USC 812 – Schedules of Controlled Substances Most arrests are handled at the state level, but federal prosecutors can bring distribution or manufacturing charges under 21 U.S.C. ยง 841, which carries up to 20 years in federal prison for a first offense involving a Schedule I substance.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 21 USC 841 – Prohibited Acts A Federal cases are more likely with large quantities, interstate activity, or distribution networks, and federal sentences do not offer parole.