On July 15, the U.S. House voted in favor of a bill that would allow Maine’s Indian tribes, who are currently bound by a 1980 state land claim settlement agreement, to benefit from all future federal Indian laws.
The measure, which was introduced by Rep. Jared Golden, was attached as an amendment to another bill known as the National Defense Authorization Act. The bill passed with a 329-101 bipartisan vote.
Per the language of the bill, tribes would still be treated the same under Maine state law, but any federal Indian laws passed in the future by Congress would have to apply to the tribes as well.
If the bill is eventually passed by the Senate, it will amend a historic 1980 land claims settlement between the state of Maine and three of its Indian tribes, those being the Maliseet, Peobscot and Passamaquoddy. At the time, tribes had claimed nearly two-thirds of the state, and as part of the negotiations, Maine stipulated that the tribes could not benefit from any past or future federal Indian laws that undermined the state’s authority, unless they were specifically included by Congress.
Since then, state tribes have been excluded from numerous federal Indian benefits, including: the ability to operate tribal casinos as granted by the Indian Gaming Act; the ability to seek federal funds for emergency relief as granted by the Stafford Act; the ability to employ out-of-state medical professionals as granted by the Indian Health Improvement Act; and the ability to prosecute non-Native perpetrators who commit acts of domestic violence on tribal lands as granted by the Violence Against Women Act.
No other federally recognized tribes in the U.S. (over 500) currently have the same limitations. This latest proposal will now head to the Senate, where passage is not a guarantee by any means.
Golden said in a statement that “what these tribes want is what all communities in my district want — economic opportunity for their families and safer, healthier communities.” He added: “”We have a long way to go until this bill reaches the president’s desk, but I have been honored to work with Wabanaki tribal leaders and my colleagues to advance this legislation.”
Kirk Francis, chief of the Penobscot Nation, also released a statement saying that he and other tribal officials are looking forward to “working with our senators on getting final passage through Congress this year.”
Perhaps the biggest opponent of the bill is state Gov. Janet Mills, who has strongly opposed amending the terms of the 1980 settlement. In fact, a similar state bill that was passed through both chambers of the Maine legislature last session was eventually withdrawn after Mills made it known she would veto it.
