Oregon

An unprecedented winter storm has left roughly 4.3 million Texans without electricity due to a surge in demand, with people not having electricity for over 24 hours. Other states, including Kentucky, Mississippi, Alabama, Oklahoma and Oregon, were also affected by the severe weather conditions.

Texas Governor Gregg Abbott has urged "all Texans to remain vigilant against the extremely harsh weather" and air travellers were warned that they should expect delays or cancellations.

Voters have approved Measure 109 that directs the Oregon Health Authority to create a state-licensed, psilocybin-assisted therapy program over the next two years. In addition, a regulation plan for the substance should be developed by the authorities as psilocybin remains a Schedule I substance under federal rules.

The measure aims to help patients with chronic mental health issues like PTSD, depression and addiction as well as reducing anxiety for patients who are dying.

Over half a million people – or 10+% of the state's population – are fleeing Oregon to escape the wildfires that have been raging across the Pacific Northwest.

Governor Kate Brown (D) told reporters that this most likely wasn't a "one-time event" and that the current situation was a "bellwether for the future" of "acute impacts of climate change." Brown has reported that at least four people have died, including a 12-year-old boy and his grandmother.

The smoke generated by the wildfires raging across California has turned the Bay Area skies into a deep orange and has caused ash to rain down on San Francisco, Berkeley and Oakland on Wednesday morning.

Wildfires are currently devasting large parts of California, Washington and Oregon.

The Initiative PDX-01 has managed approval for inclusion on the ballot of the presidential elections of the United States in November. Voters in Oregon will decide if psilocybin will be allowed for therapeutic use. The measure calls for a transition period of two years in which therapists will be licensed to be approved to treat patients with the psychedelic substance that is found in psychedelic mushrooms.

The chief petitioner of the campaign Sheri Eckerd has stated that "This careful, regulated approach can make a real difference in peoples’ lives and we’re looking forward to bringing this program to the state" advocating for approval by the voters. Oregon would be the first state to legalize the limited use of the substance.