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California Cannabis Czar Lori Ajax to Step Down

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After overseeing the California Bureau of Cannabis Control (BCC) for nearly five years, the woman known as California’s Cannabis czar is calling it quits.

Alex Traverso, spokesperson for the BCC, confirmed her resignation and said she informed staff at the agency last week. Her resignation is effective Dec. 2.

Lori Ajax was initially appointed in February 2016 to oversee California’s Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation by then-Governor Jerry Brown. She was appointed only months after legislators approved the first statewide regulatory system for medical cannabis in California.

Ajax stayed in charge of the agency after the name was changed to the BCC following the 2016 election when recreational cannabis was legalized in California. She oversaw the rollout of California’s recreational cannabis market in January 2018, and was retained by Governor Gavin Newsom after he took over in office in January 2019.

The BCC recently donated nearly $30 million in public university grant funding to various universities across California. The BCC received more than 100 applications and awarded up to $2 million for any specific research proposal. “The research conducted through these public university grants will provide critical information for evaluating our legal cannabis system and its impacts,” said BCC Chief Lori Ajax said. “This research will be a valuable tool to inform future cannabis policy in California.” The top five universities to receive some of this grant money is University of California, San Francisco, University of California, Santa Barbara, Cal State University Dominguez Hills, University of California, Berkeley and University of California, Los Angeles.

Traverso said it’s unclear whether an interim chief will be appointed and some of the concern is due to the BCC merging with two other state regulatory agencies that oversee the cannabis industry in the state. The merger is expected to happen next year and the new department will be called the Department of Cannabis Control.

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