The former executive director of Maine’s Office of Cannabis Policy left state government this year to start a new joint helping pot businesses navigate the same regulations he helped develop.
Erik Gundersen, a native of Bangor, left his state job behind in October to form ERG Strategies LLC. He is also employed as a senior adviser to Cannabis Public Policy Consulting.
Gundersen’s no greenhorn to the marijuana industry. He worked as senior policy advisor to former House Speaker Sara Gideon in 2017 and 2018, where he influenced the Legislature’s Joint Select Committee on Marijuana Legalization and Implementation. From there, Gov. Janet Mills selected him to establish the Office of Cannabis Policy and launch the state’s recreational cannabis program.
MaineBiz.com writes of the pot policy wonk: “Under Gundersen’s leadership, the Office of Cannabis Policy created and oversaw the first set of program rules, built out systems and processes and processed license applications.”
Having written the rule book on legal pot in Maine, Gundersen’s ready to cash by dispensing his wisdom throughout the industry and serving as rasta for other governments that have legalized the drug.
