The stage is set for a Statehouse showdown on recreational cannabis, and Butler County voices are a part of the conversation.

A bill introduced in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives by state Rep. David Delloso, D-162nd, would allow recreational marijuana use in the commonwealth. It's unclear whether the bill can make it through the Republican-controlled House, but a public opinion report recently released by Lt. Gov. John Fetterman is drawing attention to it.

In May, Fetterman finished a listening tour of every county in the commonwealth. He visited Butler County in late March with a stop in Slippery Rock.

The Butler County stop had 250 attendees, according to Fetterman's report. Of written comments and remarks made during the event, 88 percent were in favor of recreational marijuana being legalized. Another 9 percent were against, and the remainder were undecided.

The report also includes data for comments logged via phone calls, emails and online forms as well as comments from the tour. Factoring all those sources in, 86 percent were in favor, 12 percent were against and 2 percent were undecided.

State Rep. Tedd Nesbit, R-8th, said Fetterman's report hasn't convinced him. He thinks the sample of voters at Fetterman's event wasn't a good microcosm of the county.

“I don't think that's representative of how my constituents feel,” Nesbit said.

He's opposed to a recreational marijuana bill, he said, for three main reasons: the drug's continued illegal status at the federal level, the still relative newness of medical marijuana in Pennsylvania and the societal impact of such a change.

“I don't think we should be promoting that,” Nesbit said.

Nesbit's concerns mostly align with the objections cited at Fetterman's event.

The three most common opposition stances outlined in Butler County, the report states, were negative effects on public health and youth, concerns over cannabis as a gateway drug and insufficient research available.

Nesbit's concerns over federal laws are shared by state Rep. Marci Mustello, R-11th.

“I can't believe the governor would promote the recreational use of something that has been deemed by the federal government as a dangerous and illegal drug,” Mustello said in a written statement. “Our state is fighting an opioid epidemic, and now he wants to make marijuana legal?”

Mustello said she has concerns for employers who might struggle with safety regulations related to the drug's rollout.

Both Mustello and Nesbit said they think societal harms from marijuana legalization would outweigh tax revenues.

In July 2018, Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale released a report stating legalized marijuana would add $581 million annually in tax dollars to the state based on a 35 percent tax rate.

Fetterman's report lists lower crime rates and health benefits as the most common positive attributes of recreational marijuana listed by Butler County residents.