The Massachusetts cannabis regulator named a new executive director Monday, after more than a year without a permanent boss. The appointment cements fresh leadership for an agency that has weathered mounting complaints that it is dysfunctional and needs reform.

The Cannabis Control Commission hired Travis Ahern, who has served as Holliston town administrator since 2020.

He will enter the job in 2025 amid a period of tumult for the agency in charge of Massachusetts’ $8 billion cannabis industry.

The commission, a board of five appointed members with a staff led by the executive director, has been without a permanent chair since September 2023. The former chair, Shannon O’Brien, was fired by state Treasurer Deborah Goldberg based on accusations of misconduct and has been battling to keep her job since.

The commission has been plagued by accusations of internal strife and faced criticism from some in the industry over its stringent regulations.

In June, Massachusetts Inspector General Jeffrey S. Shapiro, a state watchdog, called on the Legislature to place the embattled commission into receivership. Terming it a “rudderless agency,“ he identified confusion in the commission’s governing structure that left unclear who was responsible for its day-to-day operations.

Ahern is the agency’s second executive director, succeeding Shawn Collins, who went on parental leave in September 2023 and resigned that December before returning to work.

“I believe the future is very bright for the CCC and I am excited to be a part of it,” Ahern said in a statement.

Commissioner Bruce Stebbins, the body’s acting chair, said Ahern “stood out to the search committee among the 170 professionals who applied for the opportunity to lead the commission.”

Ahern brought “the right combination of leadership knowledge and administrative expertise to oversee the dedicated staff who carry out our mission of ensuring a safe, effective and equitable cannabis market,” Stebbins said in a statement.

Since last fall, the commission’s Chief People Officer, Debbie Hilton-Creek, has led the agency in an acting capacity.

Ahern was the cannabis board’s second choice for the position.

A months-long process that ran well beyond its initial timeline ended in October when commissioners selected David Lakeman, director of the Cannabis Division at the Illinois Department of Agriculture, as the next executive director. But Lakeman ultimately turned down the job offer to stay in Illinois.

Ahern is “potentially slated” to begin work in March, according to a commission spokesperson.

During his October interview, Ahern told commissioners he was in the second year of a three-year contract with Holliston and that he is supposed to provide notice three months in advance of leaving for another job.

He was previously the policy and finance director for the Massachusetts Water Resource Authority Advisory Board and held roles in municipal government in Danvers and Weston.

Cumulative recreational cannabis sales surpassed $7 billion in November, along with more than $1.4 billion in medical marijuana sales.

The commission also this month released a long-awaited outline of regulations for cannabis lounges and other “social consumption” businesses, where customers could consume marijuana on-site.

• Read more: When will Massachusetts allow cannabis lounges? It’s anyone’s guess

Commissioners had also interviewed Matt Giancola, the agency’s government affairs official, and Marty Golightly, Cityblock Health’s senior director of clinical staff affairs, for the executive director’s job.

The board offered Ahern the job in a 4-0 vote last week.

Material from the State House News Service was used in this report.