An Act To Allow the Passamaquoddy Tribe To Operate Slot Machines in Washington County in Conjunction with High-stakes Beano
Maine Legislature, Session 126, LD 1520
Committee: Veterans and Legal Affairs
Sponsors: SOCTOMAH, TUTTLE, AYOTTE, BEAVERS, BROOKS, CASSIDY, CHAPMAN, DOAK, GIFFORD, GRANT, HICKMAN, KUMIEGA, LONGSTAFF, MAKER, MALABY, MONAGHAN-DERRIG, NADEAU, RUSSELL, DUTREMBLE, HASKELL, JACKSON, LACHOWICZ, LANGLEY, MAZUREK, PATRICK, SHERMAN
Amends: 8 MRSA §1011, 8 MRSA §1019, 8 MRSA §1020, 8 MRSA §1035, 8 MRSA §1036, 17 MRSA §314-A

Legislative Document 
No. 1520 
H.P. 1091 
House of Representatives, May 8, 2013 
An Act To Allow the Passamaquoddy Tribe To Operate Slot 
Machines in Washington County in Conjunction with High-stakes 
Beano 
Reference to the Committee on Veterans and Legal Affairs suggested and ordered printed. 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative SOCTOMAH of the Passamaquoddy Tribe. 
Cosponsored by Senator TUTTLE of York and 
Representatives: AYOTTE of Caswell, BEAVERS of South Berwick, BROOKS of 
Winterport, CASSIDY of Lubec, CHAPMAN of Brooksville, DOAK of Columbia Falls, 
GIFFORD of Lincoln, GRANT of Gardiner, HICKMAN of Winthrop, KUMIEGA of Deer 
Isle, LONGSTAFF of Waterville, MAKER of Calais, MALABY of Hancock, MONAGHAN-
DERRIG of Cape Elizabeth, NADEAU of Winslow, RUSSELL of Portland, Senators: 
DUTREMBLE of York, HASKELL of Cumberland, JACKSON of Aroostook, LACHOWICZ 
of Kennebec, LANGLEY of Hancock, MAZUREK of Knox, PATRICK of Oxford, 
SHERMAN of Aroostook. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  8 MRSA §1011, sub-§2-C is enacted to read: 
2-C.  Passamaquoddy Tribe eligible for license to operate slot machines.  The 
board may accept an application from the Passamaquoddy Tribe for a license to operate 
slot machines at a gaming facility in Washington County at which high-stakes beano is 
conducted by the Passamaquoddy Tribe. 
Sec. 2.  8 MRSA §1019, sub-§7, as amended by PL 2011, c. 417, §6, is further 
amended to read: 
7.  Statewide and county referendum; municipal vote.  After January 1, 2011, any 
proposed casino or slot machine facility may not be issued a license unless it has been 
approved by a statewide referendum vote and a vote of the municipal officers or 
municipality in which the casino or slot machine facility is to be located, except that a 
commercial track licensed to operate slot machines on January 1, 2011 is only required, 
as a condition to obtain a casino license, to receive approval to operate a casino by means 
of a referendum of the voters of the county in which the commercial track is located.  
Notwithstanding this subsection, the Passamaquoddy Tribe is only required, as a 
condition to obtain a license to operate slot machines at a gaming facility in Washington 
County at which high-stakes beano is conducted, to receive approval to operate those slot 
machines by means of a referendum of the voters of Washington County. 
Sec. 3.  8 MRSA §1020, sub-§3, ¶A, as amended by PL 2011, c. 585, §8, is 
further amended to read: 
A.  Except for slot machines used for training and educational purposes at 
postsecondary institutions as provided by section 1011, subsection 1-B, the total 
number of slot machines registered in the State may not exceed 3,000 3,750; and 
Sec. 4.  8 MRSA §1035, as amended by PL 2011, c. 585, §10, is further amended 
to read: 
§1035.  Location of slot machines 
Slot machines may be located only on the premises of a commercial track, the 
premises of a casino, the premises of a gaming facility in Washington County at which 
high-stakes beano is conducted by the Passamaquoddy Tribe or the premises of an 
accredited postsecondary institution for the purposes of training and education under 
section 1011, subsection 1-B.  For the purposes of this section, "premises of a commercial 
track" means property owned by the person who owns the property on which a 
commercial track is located and that is either within 200 feet of the outside edge of the 
racing oval or, if the commercial track was owned by a municipality when a license to 
operate slot machines in association with that commercial track was issued, within 2,000 
feet of the center of the racing oval. 
Sec. 5.  8 MRSA §1036, sub-§1, as amended by PL 2011, c. 417, §7, is further 
amended to read: 
1.  Distribution for administrative expenses of board.  A slot machine operator 
licensed under section 1011, subsection 2 or 2-C or a casino operator that is a commercial 
track that was licensed to operate slot machines under section 1011, subsection 2 on 
January 1, 2011 shall collect and distribute 1% of gross slot machine income to the 
Treasurer of State for deposit in the General Fund for the administrative expenses of the 
board.  
Sec. 6.  8 MRSA §1036, sub-§2, as amended by PL 2011, c. 657, Pt. E, §1, is 
further amended to read: 
2.  Distribution of net slot machine income from casino with commercial track 
and from slot machines operated in conjunction with beano.  A slot machine operator 
licensed under section 1011, subsection 2 or 2-C or a casino operator that is a commercial 
track that was licensed to operate slot machines under section 1011, subsection 2 on 
January 1, 2011 shall collect and distribute 39% of the net slot machine income from slot 
machines operated by the slot machine operator to the board for distribution by the board 
as follows: 
A.  Three percent of the net slot machine income must be deposited to the General 
Fund for administrative expenses of the board in accordance with rules adopted by 
the board, except that of the amount calculated pursuant to this paragraph, the 
following amounts must be transferred annually to the Gambling Addiction 
Prevention and Treatment Fund established by Title 5, section 20006-B: 
(1)  For the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2011, $50,000; 
(2)  For the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2012, $50,000; and 
(3)  For the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2013 and for each fiscal year thereafter, 
$100,000; 
B.  Ten percent of the net slot machine income must be forwarded by the board to the 
Treasurer of State, who shall credit the money to the fund established in section 298 
to supplement harness racing purses; 
C.  Three percent of the net slot machine income must be credited by the board to the 
Sire Stakes Fund created in section 281; 
D.  Three percent of the net slot machine income must be forwarded by the board to 
the Treasurer of State, who shall credit the money to the Agricultural Fair Support 
Fund established in Title 7, section 91; 
E.  Ten percent of the net slot machine income must be forwarded by the board to the 
State Controller and except as otherwise provided in this paragraph credited to the 
Fund for a Healthy Maine established by Title 22, section 1511 and segregated into a 
separate account under Title 22, section 1511, subsection 11, with the use of funds in 
the account restricted to the purposes described in Title 22, section 1511, subsection 
6, paragraph E.  For the fiscal years ending June 30, 2010, June 30, 2011 and June 30, 
2012, the amount credited annually by the State Controller to the Fund for a Healthy 
Maine under this paragraph may not exceed $4,500,000 annually and any funds in 
excess of $4,500,000 annually during these fiscal years must be credited as General 
Fund undedicated revenue, and, for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2013, the amount 
credited by the State Controller to the Fund for a Healthy Maine under this paragraph 
is $0; 
F.  Two percent of the net slot machine income must be forwarded by the board to the 
University of Maine System Scholarship Fund created in Title 20-A, section 10909; 
G.  One percent of the net slot machine income must be forwarded by the board to the 
board of trustees of the Maine Community College System to be applied by the board 
of trustees to fund its scholarships program under Title 20-A, section 12716, 
subsection 1; 
H.  Four percent of the net slot machine income must be forwarded by the board to 
the Treasurer of State, who shall credit the money to the Fund to Encourage Racing at 
Maine's Commercial Tracks, established in section 299; however, the payment 
required by this paragraph is terminated when all commercial tracks have obtained a 
license to operate slot machines in accordance with this chapter, in which case, that 
4% of the net slot machine income must be credited to the General Fund as 
undedicated revenue; 
I.  Two percent of the net slot machine income must be forwarded by the board to the 
Treasurer of State, who shall credit the money to the Fund to Stabilize Off-track 
Betting Facilities established by section 300, as long as a facility has conducted off-
track wagering operations for a minimum of 250 days during the preceding 12-month 
period in which the first payment to the fund is required.  After 48 months of 
receiving an allocation of the net slot machine income from a licensed operator, the 
percent of net slot machine income forwarded to the Fund to Stabilize Off-track 
Betting Facilities is reduced to 1% with the remaining 1% to be forwarded to the 
State in accordance with subsection 1; and 
J.  One percent of the net slot machine income must be forwarded directly to the 
municipality in which the slot machines are located. 
Sec. 7.  8 MRSA §1036, sub-§2-A, as amended by PL 2011, c. 625, §§3 and 4 
and c. 657, Pt. W, §5, is further amended to read: 
2-A.  Distribution from casino of slot machine income.  A casino operator shall 
collect and distribute 46% of the net slot machine income from slot machines operated by 
the casino operator to the board for distribution by the board as follows: 
A.  Twenty-five percent of the net slot machine income must be forwarded directly 
by the board to the Treasurer of State, who shall credit the money to the Department 
of Education, to be used to supplement and not to supplant funding for essential 
programs and services for kindergarten to grade 12 under Title 20-A, chapter 606-B; 
B.  Four percent of the net slot machine income must be forwarded by the board to 
the University of Maine System Scholarship Fund created in Title 20-A, section 
10909; 
C.  Three percent of the net slot machine income must be forwarded by the board to 
the Board of Trustees of the Maine Community College System to be applied by the 
board of trustees to fund its scholarships program under Title 20-A, section 12716, 
subsection 1; 
D.  Four percent of the net slot machine income must be forwarded by the board to 
the Treasurer of State, who shall distribute the funds to the tribal governments of the 
Penobscot Nation and the Passamaquoddy Tribe; 
E.  Three percent of the net slot machine income must be deposited to the General 
Fund for administrative expenses of the board, including gambling addiction 
counseling services, in accordance with rules adopted by the board; 
F.  Two percent of the net slot machine income must be forwarded directly to the 
municipality in which the casino is located; 
G.  One percent of the net slot machine income must be forwarded by the board to the 
Treasurer of State, who shall credit the money to the Agricultural Fair Support Fund 
established in Title 7, section 91; 
H.  One percent of the net slot machine income must be forwarded by the board to the 
Treasurer of State, who shall credit the money to the fund established in section 298 
to supplement harness racing purses; 
I.  One percent of the net slot machine income must be credited by the board to the 
Sire Stakes Fund created in section 281; 
J.  One percent of the net slot machine income must be forwarded directly to the 
county in which the casino is located to pay for mitigation of costs resulting from 
gaming operations;  
K.  One percent of the net slot machine income must be forwarded by the board to the 
Treasurer of State, who shall credit the money to the Maine Milk Pool, Other Special 
Revenue Funds account within the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and 
Forestry to help fund dairy farm stabilization pursuant to Title 7, sections 3153-B and 
3153-D.  This paragraph is repealed July 1, 2013; 
L.  Beginning July 1, 2013, 1/2 of 1% of the net slot machine income must be 
forwarded by the board to the Treasurer of State, who shall credit the money to the 
Maine Milk Pool, Other Special Revenue Funds account within the Department of 
Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry to help fund dairy farm stabilization pursuant 
to Title 7, sections 3153-B and 3153-D; and 
M.  Beginning July 1, 2013, 1/2 of 1% of the net slot machine income must be 
forwarded by the board to the Treasurer of State, who shall credit the money to the 
Dairy Improvement Fund established under Title 10, section 1023-P. 
If a recipient of net slot machine income in paragraph D, H or I owns or receives funds 
from a slot machine facility or casino, other than the casino in Oxford County, a slot 
machine facility operated by the Passamaquoddy Tribe or the slot machine facility in 
Bangor, then the recipient may not receive funds under this subsection, and those funds 
must be retained by the Oxford County casino operator. 
Sec. 8.  17 MRSA §314-A, sub-§3-A, as enacted by PL 2003, c. 452, Pt. I, §5 and 
affected by Pt. X, §2, is amended to read: 
3-A.  Exceptions.  Notwithstanding subsection 3, an organization licensed under this 
section may operate high-stakes beano or high-stakes bingo games on New Year's Eve 
and New Year's Day.  Notwithstanding subsections 3 and 3-B, the Passamaquoddy Tribe 
may operate high-stakes beano or high-stakes bingo games on days as determined by the 
Passamaquoddy Tribe. 
Sec. 9.  Referendum; effective date.  This Act must be submitted to the legal 
voters of Washington County at a statewide election held in the month of November 
following passage of this Act.  The Washington County commissioners are authorized to 
expend such funds as necessary to implement the referendum. 
The county commissioners shall cause the preparation of the required ballots, on 
which they shall state the subject matter of this Act in the following question: 
"Do you favor the operation of slot machines by the Passamaquoddy 
Tribe at a gaming facility located in this county at which high-stakes 
beano is conducted?" 
The voters shall indicate by a cross or check mark placed against the word "Yes" or 
"No" their opinion of the same. 
This Act takes effect immediately upon its acceptance by a majority of the legal 
voters voting at the election. 
The result of the vote must be declared by the Washington County commissioners 
and due certificate must be filed by the commissioners with the Secretary of State. 
SUMMARY 
This bill authorizes the Department of Public Safety, Gambling Control Board to 
accept an application from the Passamaquoddy Tribe to operate slot machines at a 
gaming facility in Washington County at which high-stakes beano is conducted by the 
Passamaquoddy Tribe.  The bill raises the limit on the number of slot machines allowed 
in the State by 750 to accommodate the slot machines that may be operated by the 
Passamaquoddy Tribe.  Slot machines operated by the Passamaquoddy Tribe would be 
subject to the oversight of the Gambling Control Board and subject to the same laws and 
rules as other slot machines operated in this State.  The bill also amends the laws 
governing high-stakes beano to allow the Passamaquoddy Tribe to operate high-stakes 
beano on days as determined by the Passamaquoddy Tribe.  The provisions of the bill are 
subject to approval by the voters of Washington County.