New York Gov. Appoints Three New Leadership Members to OCM

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) on Monday appointed three new leadership members to the state Office of Cannabis Management (OCM), which her office said will “end the bottleneck of license applicants, improve communication with applicants and licensees, and reaffirm the agency’s commitment to the social equity goals” included in the state’s adult-use cannabis law.  

Felicia A. B. Reid, who previously served in the Office of Children and Family Services for the past six years as deputy commissioner, was appointed executive deputy director and acting executive director for OCM. In a press release, Reid called cannabis “an enormous opportunity” for the state and that “OCM is obligated to ensure that its work makes those opportunities accessible, transparent, and responsive to the industry’s movement and trends.” 

Susan Filburn was appointed chief administrative officer, a new position focusing on stabilizing and formalizing administrative functions of OCM to support licensing, compliance and enforcement operations, according to the press release from the governor’s office. Filburn has more than two decades of experience in New York government, serving the previous four years as deputy commissioner of employment security at the Department of Labor. 

Jessica Woolford was promoted to the position of director of external affairs and is tasked with building out OCM’s first customer service team to provide transparency to applicants, licensees, and consumers about the agency’s processes and the state cannabis marketplace.    

Hochul launched what her office describes as a “sweeping operational overhaul” last month. Chris Alexander, the inaugural executive director of OCM resigned from the role late last month following criticism by the governor.