Kratom Under Attack: New 2026 Bills Aim to Criminalize Consumers Across the U.S.

UPDATED FEBRUARY 23, 2026

• Illinois: Feb 26 hearing scheduled
• Maryland introduced two bills that will make kratom an unauthorized consumable product, which will ban the sale
• Michigan introduces bill to ban production and sale of kratom
• Wyoming ban has been defeated

UPDATED FEBRUARY 19, 2026

• Bans in Arizona and South Dakota have failed. Correction from previous updatE: Ohio BOP rule is awaiting review in CSI. It has not yet been passed to JCARR as previously stated

UPDATED FEBRUARY 18, 2026

• Utah SB45 will no longer ban all kratom. Plain leaf kratom will remain legal in Utah

UPDATED FEBRUARY 17, 2026

• New Ban Threat: Arizona (amendment added to existing bill)

UPDATED FEBRUARY 12, 2026:

• New Ban Threats Added since last update: Illinois, Kansas, Tennessee, West Virginia, Wyoming
• Other states updated with latest information

Note: This article lists only the bills that will potentially ban plain leaf kratom. Other bills not covered here, such as kratom consumer protection acts (KCPA), will ban all products containing more than a certain percentage (typically 2%) of 7-hyrdroxymitragynine (7-OH). Other measures, such as the emergency rule in Florida, are problematic for highly concentrated extract products whose manufacturers seek to include more than the allotted 400 ppm of 7-OH in their products. Many of these states also have concurrent KCPAs.

Another Note: Please contact representatives in these states who are sponsoring and voting on these bills. Our comments section is for discussion only. Commenting on this page or even on Legiscan, which is not a government website, will not get the message out to the specific legislators.

A new year brings a new legislative season. Thousands of kratom consumers around the country are being threatened with criminalization in the form of state bans, as we wait for the federal government to move forward with criminalizing all consumers of 7-OH via a national law that would make 7-OH a Schedule I controlled substance.

ARIZONA

BAN DIED IN COMMITTEE

UPDATE 2/19 Reddit post from AKA: “The proposed an amendment to SB 1285 that would classify kratom as a narcotic and remove the Arizona Kratom Consumer Protection Act failed in committee. Thank you to everyone who contacted! AKA legislative team will keep monitoring AZ and other states for bans”

On February 17 the American Kratom Association (AKA) announced in a post on Reddit.com/r/kratom:

Senator S. Bolick has proposed an amendment to SB 1285 that would classify kratom as a narcotic and remove the Arizona Kratom Consumer Protection Act. The hearing is likely to be Wednesday the 18th so we need to act fast. Go to https://www.protectkratom.org/arizona to contact the Senator and view the amendment. We need everyone to email her and request she remove kratom from the amendment and support the KCPA

SB1285 initially was a bill seeking to update a law regarding felonies committed by incarcerated persons to cover felonies committed in private correctional facilities, rather than just state-owned prisons. Until the amendment was added, the bill had nothing to do with kratom. The amendment updates Arizona’s list of controlled substances to include “kratom”, “7-hydroxymitragynine”, and mitragynine and any substance that is derived from the mitragyna speciosa plant”. The amendment would also make it that “Title 36, chapter 6, article 10, Arizona Revised Statutes, is repealed” — Arizona’s Kratom Consumer Protection Act, passed in 2019.

CALIFORNIA

Months after deciding that kratom is illegal, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) continues to remove kratom and 7-OH products from shelves, despite no law prohibiting either substance. On January 16, CDPH once again gave its justification in an announcement:

Under the Sherman Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (aka Sherman Law), CDPH has authority specific to adulterated or misbranded food, drug, medical device and cosmetics. Food and dietary supplements containing kratom and/or 7-OH are adulterated pursuant to federal and state law. To date, CDPH has seized more than $5 million worth of kratom and 7-OH products. CDPH continues to take action to remove products or raw materials containing kratom or 7-OH from retail facilities selling to consumers for consumption and from locations where these products are manufactured.

CDPH has no authority to arrest citizens who are in possession of kratom or 7-OH products.

There are currently no bills that would ban kratom in the California Legislature.

CONNECTICUT

In 2025, Connecticut passed a bill to direct the Commissioner of Consumer Protection to schedule kratom under. The Commissioner was to then decide under which controlled substances schedule kratom was to be placed. Despite overwhelming opposition represented in public comments, the Commissioner decided that kratom would be placed under Schedule I.

However, kratom is currently still legal in Connecticut, as it has to undergo more steps in the process to become fully banned.

On February 24, the Legislative Regulation Review Committee (LRRC) will review and may vote on the proposed Schedule I legislation. The LRRC has a March 12 deadline to make a decision on the legislation. The ban will be considered passed if the LRRC does not disapprove of it before March 12.

GEORGIA

Georgia Republicans are once again trying to criminalize consumers of kratom and 7-OH. HB968 was introduced on January 16, “as to provide that mitragynine and hydroxymitragynine [sic] (7-OH) are Schedule I controlled substances”.

The American Kratom Association (AKA) is asking people to attend a hearing on Wednesday, January 28 at 1:30pm at the Subcommittee of Judiciary Non-Civil at the Georgia State Capitol in Atlanta. If you would like to sign up with the AKA before attending, they have provided a form at https://www.protectkratom.org/georgia

ILLINOIS

Introduced by Democratic Sen. Cristina Castro on February 2, SB3160 creates the Kratom Prohibition Act. It “prohibits the purchase, possession, sale, or distribution of any product containing kratom.” As of February 10, the bill has been assigned to the Executive Committee.

A hearing has been scheduled for Wednesday February 26 at 10:00 AM at the House Executive Committee

IOWA

Three bills in Iowa are advancing to make kratom a Schedule I controlled substance: SF2013, HSB508, and HF2133. HF2133 was just introduced on January 21st, but the two other bills have been passed through respective committees and are advancing to a floor vote in both houses. UPDATE: A 4th prohibition bill, SF2192, was introduced February 4 and approved by a committee report.

Rep. Izaah Knox stated, “It seems like bad actors doing bad things; bathroom chemists… But an unintended consequence may be that a good product is off the market until we figure out some better ways to regulate it.”

Not even a year ago, HF612, a bill that would regulate kratom and make it illegal to sell anything with a concentration above 2% of 7-OH was recommended passage by the Iowa House’s Public Safety subcommittee on March 4, 2025, but never advanced to a vote.

KANSAS

Introduced on February 6th, SB497 adds kratom to schedule I of the uniform controlled substances act, making all kratom illegal and criminalizing Kansan kratom consumers The bill currently sits in the Senate Committee on Public Health and Welfare. A hearing will be held on Monday, February 16, 2026, at 8:30 AM in Room 142-S of the Kansas Statehouse, SW 8th & SW Van Buren, Topeka, Kansas.

MICHIGAN

Michigan House introduced HB5538 on February 19 that would ban the sale and production of kratom or any “synthetic variant” of kratom (such as 7-OH). Penalties for a first offense could include fines and imprisonment. Possession of kratom would steal be legal.

The bill is technically bipartisan (29 Republicans and one Democrat have co-sponsored). It was introduced, read a first time, and referred to the Committee On Regulatory Reform on February 19.

MARYLAND

Two bills have been introduced that will ban the sale of kratom, but not possession. SB820 and HB1523 will make kratom an “unauthorized consumable product”, “prohibiting a retailer from distributing, selling, exposing for sale, or advertising for sale unauthorized consumable products; authorizing the Executive Director of the Commission to seize, confiscate, or destroy unauthorized consumable products”.

AKA has published this information about upcoming hearings on these bills:

SB 820 Hearing: 2/26 at 1:00 PM (Finance Committee), East Miller Senate Building, Room 3 – Annapolis, MD

HB1523 Hearing: 3/03 at 1:00 PM (Health Committee), House Office Building, Room 240 – Annapolis, MD

MISSISSIPPI

A bipartisan bill in Mississippi, HB865, that sought to make kratom a Schedule III controlled substance has been tabled on February 10. Schedule III recognizes a possible medicinal use for a substance, but it will still remain illegal to sell and possess on the open marketplace. For example, ketamine is also a Schedule III controlled substance in Mississippi. Possession of 50 grams or less of a Schedule III substance in Mississippi could still result in one year in prison. Though this bill is effectively dead, many towns and counties have laws banning kratom locally.

OHIO

The Ohio Board of Pharmacy’s process to ban mitragynine and natural leaf kratom is ongoing. An initial public comment period ended on January 28. Next steps for advocates have been outlined in an r/kratom Reddit post, including submitting written testimony for a public by February 24, contacting the Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review (JCARR), contacting various Ohio representatives, contacting the Common Sense Initiative, and signing petition.

Currently the ban is waiting to be reviewed first by the Common Sense Initiative (CSI). CSI examines whether the rule is necessary, whether the costs are justified, and whether less burdensome alternatives exist. Then, if approved by CSI, the rule will be reviewed by JCARR, the legislative body that can approve or block administrative rules.. JCARR evaluates whether the Board has acted within its statutory authority, followed proper procedure, and used reasonable justification.

If JCARR does not block the rule, the Board may proceed to final adoption of the rule. Once adopted and filed, the rule becomes part of the Ohio Administrative Code, officially placing the substance into a controlled schedule.

Click/tap here for additional details on the possible Ohio ban

SOUTH CAROLINA

On January 13th, the South Carolina House introduced three bills that place kratom on Schedule I: H4636, H4641, and H4648. Only 8 months ago, the South Carolina Kratom Consumer Protection Act was signed into law by the governor. The act went into effect in July 2025, and prevents vendors from selling kratom to minors, requires kratom products be kept in locked display cases, implements label standards, and limits the amount of synthetic alkaloids in the product.

Prohibitionists, including state representatives, rehabilitation industry executives, and a coroner who claimed two kratom deaths in all of 2025, held a meeting in Berkeley County in early January, a week before the ban bills were introduced. They cited new derivatives like 7-OH as a reason to ban all kratom.

All bills now sit in the House Judiciary Committee as of February 11.

SOUTH DAKOTA

BAN BILLS FAILED

UPDATE 2/19 HB1151 to “Ban kratom and kratom products and to provide a penalty therefor” was introduced on January 27 and sponsored by 9 SD House Republicans. On Feb 17, Bill has FAILED to pass a vote on the House floor. “House of Representatives Do Pass, Failed, YEAS 27, NAYS 39. H.J. 339”. Thank you @LeafWithTaylor for letting us know

SB77 in the South Dakota Senate seeks to ban kratom. However, on January 21st, it passed out of the Senate Health and Human Services without recommendation. It also failed to be placed on the calendar for a floor vote under the Joint Rule that allows for bills to be voted on without recommendation, 20-13.

TENNESSEE

Companion bills entitled “Matthew Davenport’s Law”, SB1655 and HB1647, have been introduced this year to make the manufacture, sale, and possession of kratom a felony. Matthew Davenport died in 2024 in what his mother described as a “lethal interaction” between unspecified kratom products and unspecified prescription drugs.

In 2013, Tennessee passed legislation making it unlawful to manufacture, sell, or possess products containing synthetic mitragynine or 7-OH. Because that language was broad, many users and vendors initially believed that natural kratom itself was outlawed.

That confusion persisted until a 2017 Attorney General opinion clarified that kratom in its natural botanical form is not a controlled substance under Tennessee law, and only the synthetic alkaloids were prohibited. This clarification effectively overturned the interpretation that kratom was illegal in Tennessee, allowing the sale and possession of natural kratom while keeping synthetic variants banned. In 2018, a KCPA was enacted that further regulated kratom sales.

UTAH

BAN BILL AMENDED AS NOT TO BAN PLAIN LEAF KRATOM

UPDATE FEBRUARY 19: SB45 has been updated to allow plain leaf kratom to remain legal. According to Utah News Dispatch:

Senate Majority Assistant Whip Mike McKell, R-Spanish Fork, still believes a total ban of kratom, either natural or artificial, is appropriate. But, saying he needs to work with House representatives, he changed his bill on the Senate floor Wednesday to a more flexible proposal allowing only pure leaf kratom with more restrictions.

“This is going to be very narrow. This is going to eliminate, hopefully, 90% plus of our problems in the state of Utah, but we are going to allow pure leaf kratom to be sold in the state of Utah. That’s going to be done in specialty shops,” McKell told the Senate.

The bill passed the Senate and is now being read in the House.

Initially, SB45 would have repealed Utah’s Kratom Consumer Protection Act (KCPA) and designate all alkaloids in kratom as Schedule I controlled substances. However, the bill is more stringent than the previous KCPA, capping 7-OH at 0.4%, lower than the typical 2% written into most KCPA laws. This will eliminate some of the more popular liquid extract products.

Utah’s KCPA was the first such law passed in the United States in 2019.

WEST VIRGINIA

HB4459, sponsored by 10 Republicans, seeks to make kratom a Schedule I controlled substance. The bill was introduced on January 16 and referred to the House Public Health Committee on February 11.

WYOMING

HB185, a “Kratom prohibition” bill, has been introduced on February 11 into the Wyoming legislator by Republican Rep. Pepper Ottman. The bill specifically refers to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) decision to recommend a national ban on 7-OH to justify a state ban on all kratom. A first offense for possession of kratom could result in 6 months in prison.

UPDATE 2/23: Ban has been defeated