A bill legalizing online casino gaming in Maine, with sole rights allocated to the Wabanaki nations, passed the state Senate after the House of Representatives approved it.
The measure, LD 1164, which Rep. Ambureen Rana sponsored, passed the House by an 85-59 vote and cleared the Senate 18-17 after initially stalling.
Key takeaways
- Maine's Senate passed a tribal-only online casino bill as the legislative session nears the June 18 deadline.
- LD 1164 would grant Wabanaki tribes exclusive licenses for online casino games via partnerships.
- State regulators warned the public about the risks of using unlicensed online casinos targeting Maine residents.
The Senate vote came soon after the House approved the bill on June 13, when lawmakers reconsidered it after it was tabled in April. To begin with, a motion to approve the law as amended didn't get a majority, and a follow-up motion to reconsider also failed. Yet, on June 16, lawmakers finally cleared the bill, awaiting final votes from each chamber before it heads to Gov. Janet Mills.
LD 1164 would let the Penobscot Nation, Passamaquoddy Tribe, Maliseet Nation, and Mi'kmaq Nation, members of the Wabananki Confederacy, each hold one operator license. The licenses permit these tribes to collaborate with commercial providers to provide real-money online slots, poker, blackjack, and roulette.
This is similar to the existing setup for internet sports wagering, where Wabanaki tribes have exclusive rights and partner with operators like DraftKings and Caesars.
Those two sportsbooks supported the bill almost from its inception, together with their tribal partners, to advocate for the expansion. However, Maine's two commercial casino operators, PENN Entertainment and Churchill Downs, actively opposed the measure.
The pair argued that expanding online under a tribal monopoly could damage their land-based revenues and limit fair competition in the state's gaming industry. The casino operators also opposed the iGaming bill last year, resulting in its failure.
Beyond the legislature, Gov. Janet Mills is still a wild card. While she hasn't publicly spoken about LD 1164, she has been leery of increased gambling in the past.
Maine raises alarm about unlicensed gambling
Along with the legislative push, Maine's Department of Public Safety Gambling Control Unit (GCU) recently published a public advisory regarding unlicensed iGaming activity targeting the state's residents.
Online Maine sports betting and fantasy sports are presently legal, though real-money online casino gambling is not.
The GCU clarified that no entity is currently licensed to provide online casino gaming in Maine and cautioned that most websites advertising games do so without a regulator's supervision.
The agency particularly mentioned threats from offshore and unlicensed sweepstakes or social casino websites, which replicate legitimate gaming websites but provide real-money prizes or gift cards via loophole-based currency systems.
The GCU warned that using such unlicensed services has significant risk, as the state doesn't provide consumer protection or any avenue for resolving disputes relating to unlawful gambling activity.
