Since the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) July 29 announcement recommending 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) become a Schedule I controlled substance, many counties, cities, and towns have reacted by announcing possible bans on 7-OH, but also on plain leaf kratom, which the FDA said it is not targeting. Local municipalities have been enacting bans for years, most notably in San Diego, CA, multiple counties in Mississippi, and multiple small towns in Illinois. However, with the recent FDA announcement, local prohibition actions have increased in the past four months.
Statewide, Florida enacted an emergency rule on August 15 banning 7-OH only, but began to seize thousands of both 7-OH and kratom products from shelves on September 13, before making another emergency rule that all kratom products must list 7-OH amounts in parts per million. Ohio announced it wanted its own emergency rule banning both 7-OH and kratom, but switched the focus to 7-OH after Governor Mike DeWine received a call from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. The California Department of Public Health simply declared both 7-OH and kratom illegal and began raiding stores and seizing products.
Multiple cities and towns in California reacted as well as other municipalities across the nation.
This is a list of known actions against kratom, 7-OH, or both from municipalities since the July 29 FDA announcement. Note that some of these municipalities have yet to enact a ban or regulation. Some have just placed it on their agenda.
| Municipality | State | Gov_Type | Date | Action | Kratom/7-OH |
| Orange County (unincorporated) | CA | County | Aug 12, 2025 | Ordinance banning certain synthetic kratom products; age & packaging restrictions | 7-OH targeted |
| Fresno (City) | CA | City | Nov 2025 | City adopted ban on sale of kratom products within city limits | Kratom and 7-OH (citywide ban) |
| Fresno County | CA | County | Nov 18, 2025 | Ordinance banning synthetic/high-7OH kratom while allowing natural leaf sales to 21+ | 7-OH targeted |
| Laguna Niguel | CA | City | Oct 7, 2025 | Introduced ordinance (Ord‑2025‑236) to ban sale/distribution of kratom and 7‑OH | Kratom and 7-OH |
| Tustin | CA | City | Oct–Nov 2025 | Ordinance introduced/adopted to ban sale/distribution of kratom products (city packet) | Kratom and 7-OH |
| Fountain Valley | CA | City | Sept–Nov 2025 | Council considered actions targeting synthetic kratom; hearings directed | 7-OH targeted |
| Riverside County | CA | County | Late Oct 2025 | Board adopted ordinance regulating sale/distribution of kratom and 7‑OH; banned concentrated/synthetic products | 7-OH targeted |
| Los Angeles County | CA | County | Sep–Nov 2025 | County public-health/enforcement actions and seizures related to kratom/7‑OH; local jurisdictions involved | 7-OH and concentrated products |
| Riverside (city) / surrounding localities | CA | City/Local | Aug–Nov 2025 | Various local hearings & enforcement on kratom / synthetic derivatives; related county actions | 7-OH targeted |
| Northampton | MA | City / Board of Health | Aug 21, 2025 | Regulation restricting/manufacturing/sale (synthetic/high-7-OH banned; natural leaf allowed) | 7-OH targeted |
| Marlborough | MA | City / Board of Health | Oct 7, 2025 | Board of Health regulation restricting manufacturing/sale of kratom (effective Dec 1) | Kratom and 7-OH (broad BOH regulation) |
| Rock Hill / Chesterfield area | MO | City / Municipalities | Oct 2025 | Municipal agendas showed first-reading items for restricting/age-limit on kratom sales | Age/restriction focused |
| Kansas City metro area (KC & Overland Park) | MO / KS | City/Metro area | Nov–Dec 2025 | City leaders discussed restrictions; federal/state seizures spurred local consideration | 7-OH targeted |
| Diamondhead | MS | City | Oct 7, 2025 | City council directed city attorney to research/regulate kratom; agenda discussion recorded | Undetermined (research/discussion) |
| Blackfeet Nation (Reservation) | MT | Tribal Government | Sep 12, 2025 | Tribal council resolution banning sale/use/possession of kratom on reservation | Kratom and 7-OH (reservation ban) |
| Toledo | OH | City | Nov 2025 | Council action to prohibit sale of synthetic kratom products (or ordinance in motion) | 7-OH targeted |
| Spokane | WA | City | Dec 1, 2025 | Mayor proposed ordinance to ban sale & distribution of kratom and 7‑OH (proposal) | Kratom and 7-OH |
Public health and safety, in general, are the main reasons given for these actions. Often, kratom is not distinguished by local officials from 7-OH in terms of safety profile. In local news media, the terms 7-OH and kratom are often used as synonymous, as though 7-OH is the chemical term for kratom, rather than a metabolite of the kratom alkaloid mitragynine. Some statements from local officials suggest they want to ban the entire plant because 7-OH can be derived from plain leaf kratom.
Specific reasons cited for proposed bans are: opioid-like effects and dependence risk, perceived links to overdose, illness, and death, unregulated and inconsistent products, accessibility to minors, marketing as safe and natural, impact on addiction recovery, and lack of federal/state action.
Kratom advocacy organizations have had to play wack-a-mole in opposing these bans, often dealing with public hearings that have been announced a short time in advance.
A consultant for the American Kratom Association (AKA), Geoffrey Laredo, criticized the Fresno City Council’s proposal for a complete ban as not a “science and evidence-based approach to promoting public health”. He argued that the City should follow the County’s lead and adopt a “nuanced discussion” distinguishing between natural leaf kratom products and highly concentrated 7-OH products.
Allison Smith, director of government affairs with the Global Kratom Coalition, stated at the Fresno City Council that deaths are caused by “certain bad actors who are taking an alkaloid from kratom. They are concentrating it and enhancing [it] into powerful substances”. Smith noted that bans sought by the FDA do not target the natural leaf product, which acts similarly to “caffeine in small doses”.
While AKA and GKC are calling for prohibition on 7-OH and not plain leaf kratom, individual 7-OH consumers and organizations like Holistic Alternative Recovery Trust and 7-HOPE Alliance want to keep 7-OH legal. In public communication to various town councils, several individuals credit 7-OH with their recovery from opioid addiction, stating that it has provided “stability and a deeply fulfilling life”, and calling it an “incredibly valuable harm reduction tool”. One person claimed 7-OH was integral to their recovery after “all recovery related medications and services” failed them. Consumers emphasize that kratom and 7-OH help regulate comfort for people like disabled veterans, seniors, and citizens who rely on this option to live functional lives.