A co-owner of the business that plans to open a medical marijuana dispensary in Butler says he is not worried about Thursday's announcement from the U.S. Justice Department.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions said Thursday that the department was ending an Obama-era federal policy that provided legal shelter for marijuana sales in states that have allowed recreational pot. It was unclear Thursday whether the end of these policies would effect medicinal marijuana, which is legal in 29 states.

Pennsylvania in 2016 passed a law allowing medical marijuana to be grown, prescribed and sold to patients with certain medical conditions. The state's first sales are set to take place later this year. Pennsylvania's law still forbids the smoking of marijuana and the sale of the unprocessed marijuana plant.

Kent Hartley, a Butler native and co-founder of Cresco Yeltrah, said his company does not plan to stop operations or change anything it is doing in light of the announcement.

“I believe it is yet to be determined exactly how the government is going to resolve the issue. We're not too concerned about it at this point,” Hartley said.

He said they believe marijuana is a state issue and residents should follow state guidelines.

Cresco Yeltrah has been licensed by the state for a growing facility in Brookville, Jefferson County, and a dispensary on Pillow Street in Butler.

Hartley said medical marijuana has bipartisan support and support from more than 75 percent of the public, according to some polls.

“That's higher than any politician,” he said. “It would be difficult to put that genie back in the bottle.”

A law passed by Congress strictly limits the federal government from interfering with medical marijuana sales. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which has jurisdiction over federal cases in California and eight other Western states, has interpreted that law to bar any prosecutions in medical pot cases.

Sessions has sought to have the federal ban lifted, and Justice Department officials suggested their new policy could be extended to threaten medical pot as well, if the law changes or if the 9th Circuit's interpretation is overturned. They left unclear whether they might pursue prosecutions of medical pot in states outside the 9th Circuit's jurisdiction.

Justice Department officials said the policy reversal won't necessarily mean a rush of new marijuana prosecutions. But they made clear their intent was to end the “safe harbor” for the industry to operate in.

Some of the elected officials who represent Butler County offered different views on the announcement.

In a statement issued by his office, Rep. Mike Kelly, R-3rd, said the Justice Department should be able to enforce the law and deal with criminal organizations that spread drugs and violence.

“This is about protecting innocent people. The Attorney General is right to rescind an unnecessary policy that undermined federal law and weakened the ability of prosecutors to fight crime. This memo simply reaffirms the rule of law and once again lets U.S. Attorneys use proper discretion to summon federal resources based on countering the worst problems in their different districts,” the statement reads.

In a statement Thursday, Sen. Pat Toomey did not take a stance for or against the announcement: “Senator Toomey and his staff are reviewing the legal implications of Attorney General Sessions's decision to rescind the Obama Administration's Cole memo regarding marijuana enforcement. Senator Toomey continues to believe that the federal government should help facilitate research into marijuana for legitimate medical purposes.”

Gov. Tom Wolf, in a news release, vowed to protect patients seeking medical marijuana from “overreach by the federal government.”

“Despite backwards moves by the Trump administration, I will continue to protect cancer patients, kids with epilepsy, veterans with PTSD and all Pennsylvanians seeking relief from legal medical marijuana. In Pennsylvania, we legalized medical marijuana in an overwhelming and bipartisan fashion, and we are months away from getting this medicine to patients that need it,” he said in the release.

Wolf did not say in the release how his administration might seek to protect medical marijuana patients.

Eugene DePasquale, Pennsylvania auditor general, in a news release said the decision was fueled by “regressive political ideology.”

“As a public servant and an outspoken supporter of regulating and taxing marijuana, I am outraged by this move by the Trump administration. Jeff Sessions is spitting in the faces of the 64 percent of Americans who openly support marijuana legalization,” DePasquale said in the release.

Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., State Sen. Scott Hutchinson, R-21st, and State Rep. Brian Ellis, R-11th, did not return calls for comment Thursday.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.