A couple of the items the St. Joseph City Council discussed at Monday night’s meeting included kratom and sewer rates.

According to the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, leaves from the tropical tree Kratom in Southeast Asia cause stimulant and sedative effects in different doses. Kratom can be taken as a pill, crushed and smoked or brewed as a tea. According to the FDA, there is still a lot of research being done on the effects of kratom. 

St. Joseph Mayor Bill McMurray said the council voted 6 to 2 against banning kratom. After the vote, however, a bill was proposed that would prohibit the possession of kratom by or sale of kratom to anyone under the age of 21.

“The Opioid Task Force is very concerned about kratom and particularly its use among middle school and high school kids. On the other hand, there were people who talked about, ‘Kratom has helped me with anxiety or getting off opioids,’ or ‘I can use it instead of ibuprofen for arthritis pain or whatever,’” McMurray said. “I think the compromise that seems as though most people are willing to accept is that we just ban the sale for those who are under the age of 21, just as we do alcohol.”

Also at the meeting, McMurray said the council decided to have a work session regarding sewer rates.  

“We don’t want to increase the sewer rates this year and there’s some confusion by staff. We’re going to have a work session and clear up the confusion,” McMurray said.

The St. Joseph City Council will meet next at 7 p.m. on June 17th.

CORRECTION-A previous version of this story stated there was a first reading of the bill to prohibit the possession of kratom by or sale of kratom to anyone under the age of 21, but according to the city clerk, due to council procedures at the last meeting, a first reading did not take place. The first reading will take place at the June 17th meeting.