Minnesota Governor Selects Top Marijuana Regulator For The State

“I am confident that OCM and the Minnesota cannabis industry will continue to prioritize public health and safety, consumer confidence and market integrity.”

By Michelle Griffith, Minnesota Reformer

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) on Wednesday announced that Eric Taubel will serve as executive director of the Office of Cannabis Management. He’s been serving in the role in an interim capacity for eight months.

Taubel is overseeing what’s been a sluggish cannabis market rollout after the Legislature legalized adult-use cannabis in 2023. The Office of Cannabis Management is currently issuing licenses to marijuana businesses and, as of August 6, it had issued 10 microbusiness licenses, with nearly 1,100 preliminarily approved. Microbusinesses can grow and sell marijuana products.

Tribal nations including Red Lake and White Earth moved quickly set up their own cannabis operations to serve the new legal market.

Minnesota dispensaries can only sell cannabis grown within the state, so the supply chain will likely take a while to develop, the Star Tribune reported. At a cannabis conference last month, Taubel said that he expects a “more realized model of the market” to take effect in early 2026, the Strib reported.

Taubel previously served as the Office of Cannabis Management’s general counsel and was also general counsel for the Department of Education.

“Under his experienced leadership, I am confident that OCM and the Minnesota cannabis industry will continue to prioritize public health and safety, consumer confidence and market integrity,” Walz said in a statement Wednesday.

Taubel took over from the previous interim OCM director, Charlene Briner.

Walz’s first pick for OCM director, Erin Dupree, resigned one day after being appointed after reports that her hemp shop sold illegal products.

This story was first published by Minnesota Reformer.