BANGOR DAILY NEWS                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Friday, April 25, 2003

Indian tribes urge Baldacci to respect their sovereignty
Diana Graettinger

INDIAN TOWNSHIP - The meeting was cordial, the message uncompromising.Two of Maine's Indian tribes told Gov. John Baldacci on Thursday they have "drawn a line," and their message is that they will not allow the state to chip away at their sovereignty.

Leaders from the Penobscot Nation, the Passamaquoddy Tribe and the Aroostook Band of Micmacs met for more than an hour behind closed doors with Baldacci as part of the annual Maine Indian Tribal-State Commission meeting.

Passamaquoddy state tribal Rep. Fred Moore Jr. said the Indians hope that the new governor will work with them on issues that continue to be sticking points.

Baldacci said after the closed-door session that he believes the tribes have begun a dialogue with the state on issues they agree upon and that they respect each other's views in cases where they don't agree.

A major disagreement has been a move by the Penobscot and Passamaquoddy to build a casino in southern Maine. Baldacci opposes a casino, as did his predecessor, Gov. Angus King.

The tribes have shifted the issue away from the governor and Legislature and put it in the hands of voters in November, when it will be part of a statewide referendum.

Unlike other federally recognized tribes, the Penobscot and Passamaquoddy need state approval to operate a casino because courts have ruled that the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act of 1980 supersedes the federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. It is the gaming law that has allowed other tribes in the nation to have casino gaming.

The 1980 settlement act also is an issue. The tribal officials believe the state has used it against the tribes.

The landmark measure, which was cleared by the Legislature, approved by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by then-President Carter after four years of negotiations, provided the tribes with $81.5 million in federal money. In return, the tribes agreed to relinquish their claim to 12.5 million acres in Maine, to abide by most state laws and to provide services similar to a municipality.

The state maintains that because the tribe is considered a municipality it comes under the same state laws that govern all municipalities, including the state Freedom of Access Law. The tribes believe that they are sovereign nations exempt from most state laws that affect internal tribal affairs.

In the past 23 years, the two sides have agreed to minor changes to the settlement act, mostly dealing with tribal authority over some criminal matters on tribal lands and additions to the land trust.

But whenever there has been a disagreement, it has been state courts that have resolved them, and, according to Moore, most of those decisions have been against the tribes.

"Throughout the past 20 years we found ourselves interpreting the settlement act in the court of the competitor [the state]. It has never been interpreted by the joint tribal council or the Passamaquoddy tribal court," he said. "So what we put forth to the governor is that the state has been both competitor and referee in the same vein [on numerous tribal issues], and that is unfair."

Moore said the leaders asked Baldacci to support legislation, including a bill that would exempt the tribes from the state's Freedom of Access Law, which forces public disclosure of certain government documents.

That issue erupted in 2001, when the Maine Supreme Judicial Court sided with the state Attorney General's Office, ordering the tribes to abide by the law and turn over water-quality documents to paper companies.

As part of the state's efforts to obtain the authority to issue wastewater discharge permits under the federal Clean Water Act, a coalition of paper companies requested tribal documents about water quality under the Freedom of Access Law.

The tribes objected to the state's application for permitting authority, saying state officials had been too lenient with paper companies. Instead they wanted the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to continue to issue the permits.

"As a tribe we have a commitment, we have traditions that go way beyond policy and written law and that is to take care of that water," said Penobscot Chief Barry Dana on Thursday. "For anybody to step up and come into our homes and say we want it because we want it is an infringement upon our sovereignty."

Penobscot state Rep. Donna Loring said that relations with King had deteriorated over the last six years of his term and she hopes for a new beginning with Baldacci, who took office in January.

"I basically asked the governor to keep an open mind and to communicate more with us," she said.

Pleasant Point Tribal Gov. Melvin Francis said tribal leaders also discussed economic development and future partnerships with local communities and the state with Baldacci, a move that he said would benefit everyone.

Indian Township Gov. Robert Newell said Baldacci proposed more joint meetings with the tribes. He said he viewed that as a positive move toward a more open dialogue between the tribes and the state.

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