Government Affairs

We have been an effective and long-time advocate and advisor for our Tribal clients working before the federal government, as well as state and non-tribal local governments. Drummond Woodsum attorneys regularly represent our tribal clients and negotiate and interact regularly with the Department of the Interior, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the National Indian Gaming Commission, and various federal agencies and organizations. Our lawyers have an excellent reputation at the federal level and have found that reputation helps us achieve our clients’ objectives, whether that is taking land into trust, obtaining approval for a HEARTH Act leasing law, getting a declination letter from the NIGC, or getting the Department of the Interior to support tribal litigation to affirm tribal environmental regulatory rights in the face of state and industry opposition.

At the state level, we have successfully led gaming and tax compact negotiations for our clients in Connecticut, Michigan, Indiana, Maine, and California. We have worked with our tribal clients in multiple states to successfully negotiate state and local compacts, agreements, and memoranda of understanding encompassing areas such as cannabis, environmental protection, community economic development, and law enforcement. In recent years, our work has resulted in legislation addressing Indian child welfare, criminal jurisdiction, online sports betting, land into trust issues, and taxation.

Recently, Drummond Woodsum assisted in the negotiation of the first-ever jurisdictional agreement between the State of Maine and the Mi’kmaq Nation, enabling the Nation to establish a criminal and civil court, police department, and fish and game department to regulate hunting and fishing. In addition to negotiating the agreement, Drummond Woodsum drafted and advocated for legislation to effectuate it.

Drummond Woodsum has also assisted in negotiating amendments to the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act, addressing a wide range of issues, including taxation and criminal jurisdiction. A recent piece of legislation recognizes the Passamaquoddy Tribe’s criminal jurisdiction over a wider array of criminal conduct and over non-Indian defendants, consistent with the criminal jurisdiction of other federally recognized tribes and the recommendations put forward by the Task Force on Changes to the Maine Indian Claims Settlement Implementing Act. We have also assisted in drafting, presenting, and ushering through legislation to provide exclusive sports betting for Tribal Nations within the State of Maine, which will be a promising source of revenue to support critical government services.