An Act To Improve Tribal-state Relations
Maine Legislature, Session 127, LD 1094
Committee: Judiciary
Sponsors: DANA, BEAR, CHIPMAN, MAKER, MITCHELL
Amends: 30 MRSA §6206

Legislative Document 
No. 1094 
H.P. 755 
House of Representatives, March 25, 2015 
An Act To Improve Tribal-state Relations 
Reference to the Committee on Judiciary suggested and ordered printed. 
ROBERT B. HUNT 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative DANA of the Passamaquoddy Tribe. 
Cosponsored by Representatives: BEAR of the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians, CHIPMAN 
of Portland, MAKER of Calais, MITCHELL of the Penobscot Nation. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  30 MRSA §6206, sub-§1, as enacted by PL 1979, c. 732, §§1 and 31, is 
amended to read: 
1.  General powers.  Except as otherwise provided in this Act, the Passamaquoddy 
Tribe and the Penobscot Nation, within their respective Indian territories, shall have, 
exercise and enjoy all the rights, privileges, powers and immunities of a municipality, 
including, but without limitation, the power of a municipality to enact ordinances and 
collect taxes, and shall be subject to all the duties, obligations, liabilities and limitations 
of a municipality of and are subject to the laws of the State, provided, however, except 
that internal tribal matters, including membership in the respective tribe or nation, the 
right to reside within the respective Indian territories, tribal organization, tribal 
government, tribal elections and the use or disposition of settlement fund income shall 
may not be subject to regulation by the State. The Passamaquoddy Tribe and the 
Penobscot Nation shall designate such officers and officials as are necessary to 
implement and administer those laws of the State applicable to the respective Indian 
territories and the residents thereof. Any resident of the Passamaquoddy Indian territory 
or the Penobscot Indian territory who is not a member of the respective tribe or nation 
nonetheless shall be is equally entitled to receive any municipal or governmental services 
provided by the respective tribe or nation or by the State, except those services which that 
are provided exclusively to members of the respective tribe or nation pursuant to state or 
federal law, and shall be is entitled to vote in national, state and county elections in the 
same manner as any tribal member residing within Indian territory. 
Sec. 2.  Effective date; certification.  This Act does not take effect unless, within 
days of the adjournment of the Legislature, the Secretary of State receives written 
certification by the Tribal Chief and Council of the Penobscot Nation and the Joint Tribal 
Council of the Passamaquoddy Tribe that the nation and tribe have agreed to the 
provisions of this Act pursuant to 25 United States Code, Section 1725(e), copies of 
which must be submitted by the Secretary of State to the Secretary of the Senate, the 
Clerk of the House of Representatives and the Revisor of Statutes, except that in no event 
may this Act become effective until 90 days after the adjournment of the Legislature. 
SUMMARY 
This bill amends An Act to Implement the Maine Indian Claims Settlement by 
removing language that provides that the Passamaquoddy Tribe and the Penobscot 
Nation, within their respective Indian territories, are subject to all the duties, obligations, 
liabilities and limitations of a municipality.