The interim director of the state's Office of Cannabis Management is stepping down, just before the licensing process for new cannabis businesses is set to begin.
Charlene Briner has been in charge of laying the groundwork for Minnesota's recreational marijuana industry, which has been slow to gel and recently had another setback when a pre-approval process for licensing was recently thrown out by a judge over equity concerns.
Governor Walz has named the Office's general counsel Eric Taubel as the new interim director once Briner leaves her post mid-January.
In December, the Office of Cannabis Management announced they will not move forward with a social equity lottery. That came after a Ramsey County Judge shut down the lottery. Briner at the time that much of the frustration around the lottery came from a perceived lack of fairness in the pre-approval process, and in the future general application round applicants who are denied will have a chance to give the office more information.
Briner initially came on to help set up what has become a fledgling cannabis agency in Minnesota, after the Legislature legalized marijuana in the 2023 legislative session.
Governor Walz’s first pick for a director, Erin DuPree, resigned after only a day on the job amid reports that a shop she owned was selling illegal products.
Briner had previously served as Deputy Commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Education, Deputy Commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Human Services, and Senior Advisor at the Minnesota House of Representatives.