A bill that will allow Maine’s federally recognized tribes to operate casinos was passed by the legislature June 17. It now heads to Governor Janet Mills to either veto or sign.
The House approved the bill 97-40 and the Senate voted 22-13.
The four tribes have worked for decades for the right to operate casinos, but each time the legislature, the governor or the voters prevented it. Unlike most other states, but Maine tribes were bound by the 1980 Maine Indian Land Claim Settlement, which gave them land and federal recognition but prevented tribal gaming.
The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Ben Collings, said in a statement: “What we are trying to do here is have Maine have the right to negotiates with the tribes for a gaming right that virtually every tribe in the country has.”
He cited the 1988 Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA), which created the framework for Indian gaming, and said Congress passed it to help tribes become financially independent and “to help tribes in mostly remote, rural areas do casino gambling as a form of economic development,” said Collings. “The tribes in Maine haven’t had that right and been asking for that right since 1988.”
If Mills signs the law, it will open the way for tribal-state gaming compacts to determine where and how such casinos would be operated. Mills has 10 days to veto or sign the bill, or it will become law without her signature. Although she took office pledging to restore strained state-tribal relations, she has also fought sovereignty efforts by tribes.
Although Maine has turned away efforts to legalize sports betting, it’s expected once it is approved, tribes will have the right to offer it as well as the state’s commercial casinos.
