Pennsylvania Cannabis Festival

Medical marijuana may be legal in Pennsylvania but that doesn't mean you'll be seeing the word "cannabis" on Adopt a Highway signs across the commonwealth.

(AP file photo)

Medical marijuana may be legal in Pennsylvania but that doesn't mean you'll be seeing the word "cannabis" on Adopt a Highway signs across the commonwealth.

PennDOT recently ruled that the Pennsylvania Cannabis Festival couldn't adopt a stretch of road in Susquehanna County because the psychotropic drug is illegal.

"I think they're just making up the rules as they go," said Jeff Zick, who organized the festival last month at Scranton's Nay Aug Park with the city's permission.

Organizing the roadside cleanups, as well as the festival, was a way to encourage the acceptance of marijuana, Zick said. "We're trying to break the public's stigma and the bad propaganda with truth and reality," he said.

A recent roadside cleanup organized by the Pennsylvania Cannabis Festival.

The group had already begun cleanup efforts along Route 106 in Susquehanna County when PennDOT rejected its application to formally adopt the roadway.

According to Zick, state officials and lawmakers provided three different reasons for the denial. First, the group was told it wasn't a business. When the festival returned with information about its LLC status, it was told that it supported non-medicinal cannabis use. Finally, a lawmaker passed along information that the group was denied because cannabis is illegal.

James May, a PennDOT spokesman, said such decisions are made by the local district executive after an initial review by the county coordinator.

"Although there are exceptions for religious or medical purposes, cannabis is still an illegal substance," he said.

The festival, May said, was neither a medical organization nor a religious group.

"Our district executive felt it would not be appropriate to allow the promotion of an illegal substance on a commonwealth-owned sign," he said.

Marijuana, of course, is on precarious legal footing. Pennsylvania and more than two dozen other states have allowed its use for medicinal purposes but the substance is still considered a Schedule 1 drug by the Drug Enforcement Administration, a category that includes other illegal drugs like heroin.

Jeff Sessions, President Donald Trump's attorney general, has signaled the federal government may crack down on marijuana despite growing state-sanctioned industries and recreational legalization in places like California and the Massachusetts.

Zick's organization advocates for full legalization. Gov. Tom Wolf and other key leaders statewide have said the state should allow its medical program to be fully implemented before going any further. Auditor General Eugene DePasquale, meanwhile, advocated for full legalization as a possible revenue generator.

Jeff Zick, with his wife Mandy, in front of the state Capitol.

Although there were people who smoked weed at this April's festival--the telltale aroma was unmistakable--Zick said the organizers strongly discouraged that behavior. Law enforcement was present, he said, but no one was arrested. The event included artists, musicians and other vendors, as well as various public speakers.

"We're heading in the right direction now," he said. "But [the state] needs to open it up for home-grow and start looking at legalization."

While the marijuana debate continues, PennDOT's Adopt a Highway program generally hasn't courted controversy--or garnered much attention at all.

Like most states, the program allows businesses and organizations to "adopt" sections of roadway for two years. In exchange for their cleanup efforts, the state provides some assistance, such as safety equipment for those working on the road sides.

May said 228 applications were received, approved and entered into the program last year. The most common reasons an application is rejected is incorrect or missing contact information, he said, or an application for a section of roadway that has already been adopted.

"In the latter case the group may select an alternate roadway, which if available and safe allows the group to join the program," he said. "We are not aware of any group previously being rejected because of a name."

PennDOT hasn't received any other Adopt a Highway applications from other marijuana-related organizations -- at least not to May's knowledge.

"So no known precedent exists for handling this type of organization," he said.

Given the implementation of Pennsylvania's medical marijuana law and the efforts of legalization advocates like Zick, that may soon change.

Meanwhile, Zick has planned another roadside cleanup along Route 106 for May 13, with or without the PennDOT signage.