After three years as a target of ire amid delays and disputes clouding Florida’s nascent medical-marijuana industry, Christian Bax is stepping down as the state’s pot czar.

Bax, who’s been at the helm of what is now known as the Office of Medical Marijuana Use since the first cannabis products went on the shelves, leaves as state health officials gird for another round of headaches as they prepare for an onslaught of applications for a handful of highly sought-after marijuana licenses.