Governor Mikie Sherrill and Attorney General Jennifer Davenport today announced the Governor’s nomination of Paul Thomas Urbish, a director at the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission (CRC), to lead the New Jersey Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC), as ABC prepares for events associated with upcoming World Cup matches.
An attorney who now heads the CRC’s Office of Compliance and Investigations, Urbish has worked in public service for approximately a decade, playing different roles in state government including at the Department of Community Affairs and ABC. He served as a deputy attorney general for ABC from 2018 to 2021, before taking a position with the CRC and rising to his present leadership role. If confirmed by the State Senate, Urbish would oversee the agency that regulates the production and sale of alcoholic beverages and enforces liquor laws.
Kirstin Krueger has been serving as Interim ABC Director since April 1, 2024. Kirstin has been in State service for seven years, first as Counsel to the Attorney General before joining ABC as Deputy Director.
“With his background in licensing, investigations, and regulating the products of New Jersey's burgeoning legal cannabis industry, and his experience with alcoholic beverage permitting and appeals, Paul understands the important balance between enabling businesses to thrive and ensuring compliance with guardrails and consumer safety,” said Governor Sherrill. “His history of regulating and fostering a fledging industry will be an asset to the ABC, which similarly oversees a sector that is constantly undergoing transformation and forms a vital part of New Jersey’s economy.”
“As ABC continues to streamline processes and build an alcohol regulation system based in integrity, safety, and economic opportunity, we welcome Paul Urbish’s exceptional leadership to balance the needs of industry while protecting residents. I look forward to him joining our leadership team at the Department of Law and Public Safety,” said Attorney General Davenport. “I also want to express my deep gratitude to Kirstin Krueger for her service as Interim ABC Director. Kirstin came into the role after major legislative changes were enacted and, among other accomplishments, has ensured an effective framework for the variety of events associated with the World Cup.”
“I’m grateful to Governor Sherrill for the opportunity to rejoin ABC and I’m excited to work with Attorney General Davenport and the ABC team,” said Paul Urbish. "I look forward to working diligently to protect residents, ensure that local businesses are operated lawfully and responsibly, and that our businesses have the necessary flexibility to accommodate an unprecedented wave of tourism this summer.”
As the director of the CRC’s Office of Compliance and Investigations, Urbish oversees the regulation and investigation of cultivators, manufacturers, distributors, testing labs, and dispensaries.
Prior to joining the CRC, he was a Deputy Attorney General at ABC, where he provided legal interpretations regarding matters including appeals from municipal action, applications for permits, and municipal ordinance review.
Urbish received his bachelor of arts in history from the College of New Jersey and his juris doctor from Temple University's James E. Beasley School of Law.
ABC regulates the manufacture, distribution, sale, and transportation of all alcoholic beverages in New Jersey. ABC’s statutory mission is to regulate and control the alcoholic beverage industry in order to foster moderation and responsibility in consumption of alcoholic beverages, to protect the citizens of New Jersey by assuring lawful, proper, and fair trade practices to maintain the stability of the industry, and protect the collection of state taxes imposed on alcoholic beverages.
