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Minnesota’s top marijuana regulator expects the state to launch adult-use sales in early 2025 as planned, despite several key administrative positions unfulfilled and the need to finalize program rules and requirements.
“There’s a lot of work happening behind the scenes keeping us on track for a successful launch in 2025,” interim director Charlene Briner told the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
Briner, who’s under contract through Feb. 15, said she hopes to fill about a quarter of the 120 positions at Minnesota’s Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) by spring.
Erin Dupree was appointed as the OCM’s first director in September but resigned within days after questions were raised about her background, including an allegation her business sold illegal hemp-derived products.
Briner said the state could begin accepting adult-use business license applications in the fourth quarter of 2024, according to the Star Tribune.
The OCM is required to develop new regulations, including taxation and a retail program for recreational marijuana as well as oversight of hemp-derived products.
Hemp-derived products were transferred under the OCM’s jurisdiction as part of Minnesota’s adult-use legalization law that took effect in May.