LARA - Meet the Michigan Liquor Control Commissioners

Meet the Michigan Liquor Control Commissioners

	Chair Pat Gagliardi Patrick M. Gagliardi was appointed by Governor Gretchen Whitmer as an Administrative Commissioner to the Michigan Liquor Control Commission in August 2019 for a term expiring June 12, 2023. At the time of his initial appointment, he was designated as Chair of the Commission by the Governor. He is a former member of the House of Representatives where he also served as the Democratic Floor Leader, and chair of the Tourism Committee and the Oversight and Ethics Committee. Since his time in the House of Representatives, he has served as a Commissioner on the Michigan Liquor Control Commission, consultant and owner of Gagliardi Associates, LLC, and director of corporate and foundation relations for Lake Superior State University. Gagliardi earned a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from Lake Superior State University.
	Commissioner Dennis Olshove Dennis Olshove was appointed as an Administrative Commission to the Michigan Liquor Control Commission in June 2012 and was reappointed for a term that expires on June 12, 2022. Olshove retired in 2010 after serving eight years as a Michigan State Senator, representing much of Macomb County. Previously, he served as Macomb County Commissioner, Michigan State Representative and as an administrative assistant in the office of State Rep. Curtis Hertel. In 2009, Olshove received the Michigan State Medical Society Legislative Leadership Award. He holds a bachelor's degree in communications from Michigan State University.
	Commissioner Geralyn A. Lasher Geralyn Lasher was appointed Administrative Commissioner for the Michigan Liquor Control Commission in August 2019 for a term that expires June 12, 2023. Prior to joining the Commission, she served as the senior deputy director for External Relations and Communications at the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, managing relationships with the statewide business community, not-for-profit organizations, governmental entities, universities, and other stakeholder groups crucial to the department. Lasher previously served as director of communications for Gov. Rick Snyder, director of the Infrastructure Services Division for the Michigan Department of Community Health (MDCH), director of the Communications, Training and Performance Support Division at MDCH, director of communications for MDCH, press secretary for the Senate Majority Leader, and deputy press secretary in the Office of the Governor.
	Lee Gonzales Lee Gonzales was appointed by Governor Whitmer as a Hearing Commissioner in September 2020 for a term that expires June 12, 2024. Before joining the Commission, he was Deputy Director of Legislative & External Affairs at the Michigan Department of Civil Rights. Gonzalez was elected to the Michigan House of Representatives for three terms (2005-2010), where he served on the Appropriations Committee, chairing the Subcommittee on Transportation. He served as Genesee County Assistant Treasurer, playing a key role in starting the state’s first Land Bank. He also served as Genesee County’s Development Director and project manager for the Flint/Genesee County Job Corps Center (a public-private partnership). Gonzales earned Bachelor of Arts in Urban Administration and Master of Public Administration degrees from the University of Michigan-Flint. He completed the Senior Executives in State & Local Government program at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. Gonzales and his wife Brenda have three children and eight grandchildren.
	Edward Toma Edward Toma was appointed as a Hearing Commissioner for the Michigan Liquor Control Commission in September 2020 for a term that expires June 12, 2024. Prior to his appointment, he served as an investigator and regulation agent in the Michigan Liquor Control Commission’s Enforcement Division, a position he held since 2009. In that role, he conducted enforcement, background, and licensing investigations as well as financial audits and undercover operations for the Commission. Prior to his time with the Commission, he worked in the alcohol retail and restaurant industry for several years. Toma holds a Bachelor of Integrative Studies in Mechanical Engineering and Biological Science from Oakland University.