AUGUSTA, Maine — A top Democrat has unveiled a renewed sovereignty push for Native American tribes in Maine, after Gov. Janet Mills successfully blocked a similar proposal last year.
But the Democratic governor is also opposed to this year’s proposal, setting the stage for another battle with lawmakers who are aiming to adjourn by mid-April.
House Speaker Rachel Talbot Ross, D-Portland, released Wednesday her amended bill to extend additional benefits to the federally recognized tribes in Maine and adjust a landmark $81.5 million settlement affecting the Penobscot, Passamaquoddy and Maliseet tribes.
That 1980 settlement, along with a separate 1991 agreement with the Mi’kmaq, saw the tribes relinquish a claim for more than two-thirds of the state’s land in exchange for becoming regulated essentially like cities and towns.
But the four tribes that are part of the Wabanaki Alliance have pointed in recent years to a Harvard University report they commissioned that found they have lagged economically behind tribes in other states that have access to federal benefits not applicable in Maine, relating to issues such as health care, trust land and disaster assistance.
This year’s plan from Talbot Ross is largely similar to her 2022 attempt to implement various recommended changes to the settlement that came from a task force, but it does not include additional gaming and tax-related tweaks, according to Toby McGrath, a lobbyist for the tribes.
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That is meant to win over Republican lawmakers who have opposed gaming, McGrath said. Separate bills have also dealt with tribal gaming and tax issues, including a 2022 compromise with Mills that handed a new mobile sports betting market to the tribes.
The latest bill will receive a public hearing Monday before the Legislature’s Judiciary Committee. It has a long list of cosponsors, including Republicans such as House Minority Leader Billy Bob Faulkingham, R-Winter Harbor.
That bipartisan support will be key, as Mills is already opposed to it. The bill retains “problematic provisions” that would lead to legal issues and significant jurisdictional changes while “making it nearly impossible for Maine people and businesses to determine what laws apply where and under what circumstances,” Mills spokesperson Scott Ogden said Thursday.
Ogden added the governor’s office “remains committed” to working with the tribes on legislation that “solves specific problems with clear language that is well-understood by all affected parties.”
Mills defended her veto of last year’s Talbot Ross bill, which the Democratic-controlled Legislature failed to overcome after some Republicans who initially voted for the measure declined to help reach a two-thirds majority needed to overturn the veto. Mills also previously lobbied against a federal version of the tribal sovereignty effort that was led by U.S. Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, but was blocked in Congress.
Mills said she was similarly opposed to last year’s sweeping tribal sovereignty proposal over potential legal issues and preferred to fix issues on a case-by-case basis. Leaders of the tribes sharply criticized the governor’s explanation.
All tribes are “on board” with the latest sovereignty push following years of failed efforts, McGrath said.
“The difference this year is that there are more people knowledgeable about this issue in the Legislature and a bigger coalition on the outside,” he said.