Following the completion of Lt. Gov. John Fetterman’s listening tour on recreational marijuana, lawmakers cautioned Monday in a joint House hearing that they would take their time in considering the impact legalization of the drug could have on Pennsylvania.

The House Health and Judiciary Committees heard from law enforcement, gun control advocates and gun owners about the effect of marijuana use, both medical and recreational, has on gun ownership. The matter is complicated, those testifying said, because of how federal and state laws conflict.

A new statewide public health poll released Wednesday by the Muhlenberg College Institute of Public Opinion found that a majority of Pennsylvanians believe climate change is a major public health threat, a finding which comes as lawmakers in the General Assembly are juggling multiple renewable energy proposals while also hosting climate change skeptics at informational hearings in the Capitol.

The survey, released in conjunction with the Muhlenberg College Public Health Program, sheds light on statewide positions on climate change, marijuana legalization and vaccines. Respondents expressed support for the legalization of recreational marijuana in Pennsylvania, and relayed skepticism over claims that vaccines present dangers.

Lt. Gov. John Fetterman told lawmakers Monday that his recreational marijuana listening tour has uncovered broad support for the practice across the state but stressed the administration has not formally taken a position on the matter.

At a joint House and Senate Democratic Policy Committee hearing on the topic, Fetterman pegged support for legalizing marijuana at “65 to 70 percent” based off the 50 counties he has visited thus far. 

Four Republican lawmakers have banded together to denounce the marijuana legalization listening tour hosted by Pennsylvania Lieutenant Gov. John Fetterman, calling it a “sham” ahead of a stop in Franklin County. 
 
Representatives John Hershey (R-Juniata), Rob Kauffman (R-Franklin), Paul Schemel (R-Franklin), Jesse Topper (R-Bedford) released a joint statement questioning the motives behind Fetterman’s listening tour, and whether the lieutenant governor is really listening at all. 

Philadelphia City Council’s Committee on Rules Friday hurried through a meeting to pass through two bills, including one to restrict the spread of marijuana dispensaries in one neighborhood near the county border.

Currently there are six dispensaries operating in the city. The state mandates they open in commercial corridors, like the Beyond/Hello location that recently opened in the shopping district of Center City.