Bill > LD1568

Introduced Session

This bill reflects the changes to L.D. 2094 of the 129th Legislature that were agreed upon by a majority of the Joint Standing Committee on Judiciary. This bill implements the consensus recommendations of the Task Force on Changes to the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Implementing Act. The report was released on January 14, 2020 and is available online at http://legislature.maine.gov/maine-indian-claims-tf. This bill does not address the relationship between the State and the Aroostook Band of Micmacs because that issue was specifically set aside by the task force. In this summary, the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 30, chapter 601, which is titled AN ACT to Implement the Maine Indian Claims Settlement and was enacted by Public Law 1979, chapter 732, is referred to as "the Maine Implementing Act" and the federal Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act of 1980, Public Law 96-420, formerly codified at 25 United States Code, Sections 1721 to 1735, is referred to as "the federal Settlement Act." The federal Settlement Act ratified the Maine Implementing Act, and both have an effective date of October 10, 1980. The purpose of the reconsideration and rewriting of the Maine Implementing Act is to establish that the Passamaquoddy Tribe, the Penobscot Nation and the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians enjoy the rights, privileges, powers, duties and immunities similar to those of other federally recognized Indian tribes within the United States. This is a significant change from the current law, which provides the State with significant authority over Indian affairs. To carry out this significant change, many provisions of Title 30, chapter 601 are repealed or amended to recognize that federal Indian law governs the rights, privileges, powers, duties and immunities of the tribe, nation and band. This bill restructures the procedures for addition of new land to tribal territories and eliminates time limits for the acquisition of land. The procedures required depend upon the location of the land and the time of acquisition. For the Passamaquoddy Tribe and the Penobscot Nation, newly acquired land located within the borders of a city, town, village or plantation requires the tribe or nation to enter into an agreement under which the tribe or nation agrees to make a payment in lieu of taxes to the relevant local taxing authority, to enter into an agreement for establishing law enforcement authority and to establish that land use is not contrary to existing zoning ordinances. This bill eliminates the language in the Maine Implementing Act regarding takings of tribal land for public use under state law. The Maine Implementing Act currently limits the criminal jurisdiction of the Passamaquoddy Tribal Court and the Penobscot Nation Tribal Court as well as the potential criminal jurisdiction of the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians Tribal Court. Federal Indian law provides broader jurisdiction for tribal courts. This bill repeals most of the state limitations and recognizes and adopts most of federal Indian law, including the Indian Civil Rights Act of 1968, the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010 and other federal laws addressing tribal court jurisdiction and the obligations of the tribal courts. This bill amends the Maine Implementing Act to make equal the exclusive criminal jurisdiction of the Passamaquoddy Tribal Court and the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians Tribal Court with the exclusive criminal jurisdiction of the Penobscot Nation Tribal Court over offenses committed by Indian defendants against Indian victims or for which there is no victim. This bill further amends the Maine Implementing Act to recognize the criminal jurisdiction of the Passamaquoddy Tribal Court, the Penobscot Nation Tribal Court and the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians Tribal Court to impose the maximum penalties other tribal courts are authorized to impose under the federal Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010, as long as the due process protections required by that Act are observed. This bill amends state law to recognize tribal court jurisdiction, concurrent with the state courts, over offenses committed on tribal lands by Indian defendants against non- Indian victims, subject to the maximum penalty provisions and due process requirements of the federal Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010. This bill retains current law providing that the exclusive authority of the Passamaquoddy Tribe, the Penobscot Nation and the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians to exercise criminal jurisdiction over Indians on tribal lands remains at the discretion of the tribe, nation and band. To the extent that the tribe, nation or band does not exercise, or terminates its exercise of, exclusive criminal jurisdiction, the State has exclusive jurisdiction over those matters. Unlike current law, this bill recognizes each tribal government's authority to define all crimes and juvenile offenses committed on its tribal lands over which the tribal court has exclusive or concurrent criminal jurisdiction. This bill, however, retains the authority of the State to define all crimes and juvenile offenses committed on tribal lands over which state courts have exclusive or concurrent jurisdiction. This bill recognizes federal Indian law regarding the exclusive jurisdiction of tribes to regulate fishing and hunting by tribal citizens of all federally recognized Indian tribes on tribal lands. This bill amends the Maine Implementing Act to restore and affirm the exclusive jurisdiction of tribes to regulate fishing and hunting by nontribal citizens on tribal lands, but does not cede to the State any authority of the Maine Indian Tribal-State Commission to regulate fishing on boundary waters under current law. This bill relinquishes the State's jurisdiction with respect to the regulation of fishing and hunting by both tribal and nontribal citizens on tribal lands. The State, solely for conservation purposes, may regulate tribal members engaged in such activities off tribal lands to the extent permitted under general principles of federal Indian law and in a manner consistent with reserved tribal treaty rights. This bill amends state law to recognize and adopt federal Indian law providing that: tribes have exclusive jurisdiction to tax tribal members and tribal entities on their respective tribal lands, including entities owned by a tribe or tribal member; tribes, tribal members and tribal entities are not subject to state and local sales taxation on tribal lands; tribal members who live on their respective tribal lands are not subject to state income tax for income earned on their respective tribal lands; tribal lands are not subject to state and local real property tax; tribes have concurrent jurisdiction to tax nonmembers on tribal lands; and the State and local governments have concurrent jurisdiction to tax nonmembers on tribal lands. This bill amends state law to restore to the Passamaquoddy Tribe, the Penobscot Nation and the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians the exclusive authority to exercise civil legislative jurisdiction over Indians and non-Indians on tribal lands. To the extent that the tribe, nation or band does not exercise, or terminates its exercise of, exclusive civil legislative jurisdiction, the State has exclusive jurisdiction over those matters. This bill amends state law to restore to the Passamaquoddy Tribe, the Penobscot Nation and the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians the exclusive authority to exercise civil adjudicatory jurisdiction over Indians and non-Indians on tribal lands. To the extent that the tribe, nation or band does not exercise, or terminates its exercise of, exclusive civil adjudicatory jurisdiction, the State has exclusive jurisdiction over those matters. This bill amends state law to explicitly provide that, for the purposes of the federal Settlement Act, Section 6(h), any law or regulation of the United States that accords a special status or right to, or relates to a special status or right of, any Indian, Indian nation, tribe or band of Indians, Indian lands, Indian reservations, Indian country, Indian territory or land held in trust for Indians applies to the Passamaquoddy Tribe, the Penobscot Nation and the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians and their members and is deemed not to affect or preempt the civil, criminal or regulatory jurisdiction of this State, including, without limitation, laws of this State relating to land use or environmental matters. This bill amends state law to explicitly provide that for the purposes of the federal Settlement Act, Section 16(b), the provisions of any federal law enacted after October 10, 1980, for the benefit of Indians, Indian nations or tribes or bands of Indians, apply to the Passamaquoddy Tribe, the Penobscot Nation and the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians and their members and is deemed not to affect or preempt the application of the laws of this State, including application of the laws of this State to lands owned by or held in trust for Indians or Indian nations, tribes or bands of Indians, regardless of whether such federal law is specifically made applicable within this State. The bill takes effect 120 days after adjournment of the First Special Session of the 130th Legislature only if, within 90 days after adjournment of the First Special Session of the 130th Legislature, the Secretary of State receives written certification from the Joint Tribal Council of the Passamaquoddy Tribe that the tribe has agreed to its provisions; the Governor and the Council of the Penobscot Nation that the nation has agreed to its provisions; and the Houlton Band Council of the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians that the band has agreed to its provisions.

AI Summary

Committee Categories

Jeffrey Evangelos (I)*,  Donna Bailey (D),  Benjamin Collings (D),  Thomas Harnett (D),  Chloe Maxmin (D),  David Miramant (D),  Rena Newell (NP),  Lois Reckitt (D),  Erin Sheehan (D),  Rachel Talbot Ross (D), 

Pursuant to Joint Rule 310.3 Placed in Legislative Files (DEAD) (on 03/09/2022)

Official Document