A Bill which would have allowed Native American tribes to open and run gambling businesses on their own lands has been vetoed by Maine Governor.
Janet Mills, the Governor of Maine expressed the concerns over reinstating tribal rights as the Bill lacked limitations via-a-vis location and sizes of the gaming facility.
The bill which originally had cleared the hurdles of legislative approval and gained majority support, was vetoed by Mills over ‘serious concerns’.
Mills added that though her priority is to fix the relationship between the tribe and the state, this particular Bill has various issues that need to be addressed.
The Gambling Insider reported the responses of the Tribes that would have been benefitted had the Bill been passed. The same has been reproduced below.
Chief Maggie Dana of Passamaquoddy Tribe said Mills had only met tribal leaders twice in the last two years and felt the Governor was not concerned with tribal issues.
Meanwhile, Chief Clarissa Sabattis of the Houlton Band of Maliseet said Mills’ rejection of the bill shows she supports out-of-state corporate gambling over people in Maine.
Chief Charlie Peter-Paul, of the Aroostook Band of Micmac, said: “They should have that right on their native lands. The Legislature understands this. The people of Maine understand this. The Governor and the large corporate gaming operations in Maine clearly don’t.”