unique among the three states which had legalized marijuana at the time (Oregon, Washington, and Colorado.) In 2015, Oregon State Governor Kate Brown signed an emergency bill allowing medical marijuana dispensaries to sell small amounts of marijuana to recreational customers in order provide a legal source of marijuana for recreational purposes while additional statutes and administrative rules were put into place for the recreational marijuana program. This "Early Retail Sales" bill allowed these sales to continue until December 31, 2016. After that time, medical dispensaries were no longer allowed to sell to recreational customers. The agency was renamed from Oregon Liquor Control Commission to Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission in August 2021. 2006 director resignation after DUI arrest On April 27, 2006, Teresa Kaiser, the director of the commission at that time, resigned after being charged with driving with a blood alcohol content of 0.16, twice the legal limit in Oregon. The arrest was widely reported in mass media after the incident occurred. Following the arrest and resignation, the OLCC board held an emergency meeting to appoint an interim acting executive director. 2023 executive director resignation OLCC's executive director Steve Marks abruptly resigned in February 2023 at the request of governor Tina Kotek. Accusations of corruption involving rare whiskey In February 2023, six additional OLCC executives were accused of diverting rare whiskey from state inventories. The accusation of corruption in the ranks of OLCC has led to the resignation of Oregon officials, who regulate alcoholic beverage and legal marijuana sales in Oregon. The governor asked that the commission install new leadership and remove the managers and executive leaders “who have taken advantage of their access and authority to benefit themselves.” Programs Today, Oregon's alcohol regulation program has three major operational programs; the Distilled Spirits Program, the Recreational Marijuana Program, and the Public Safety Program. All three programs are supported by the Administration, Financial Services, and Support Services divisions. The Distilled Spirits Program oversees the distribution and sale of distilled spirits in the state. The Distilled Spirits division centrally purchases, warehouses and distributes distilled spirits to Oregon's independently operated liquor stores. OLCC's Public Safety Program licenses and regulates businesses in the alcohol industry such as manufacturers, wholesalers, bars, restaurants, grocery and convenience stores. The Recreational Marijuana Program is exclusively authorized to make recreational marijuana available to consumers and licensed businesses through retail marijuana stores. The program also tracks the growing, transporting,