Maine legislators will reconsider a bill authorizing online casinos at the upcoming special legislative session, despite the proposal being previously shelved.
The bill, known as LD 1164, was introduced by Representative Ambureen Rana and was originally scheduled for review in April, but was temporarily shelved by a unanimous vote of the state legislature's Joint Committee on Veterans and Legal Affairs. However, the state legislature has listed the proposal as "unfinished business" and plans to re-examine it during the special session on June 18.
Core content of the bill: Tribal exclusive licenses, 16% tax rate
LD 1164 proposes to authorize Maine's four federally recognized Wabanaki tribes to operate online casino games, with each tribe able to contract with an iGaming platform. The bill sets a 16% tax rate and will be regulated by the Gambling Control Unit, which currently also oversees Maine's online sports betting business.
Like Maine's sports betting, the bill aims to advance digital gambling development through a tribal economic empowerment model.
Tribal support VS Retail casino opposition
The Wabanaki tribes support the bill, seeing it as an important step towards economic fairness. However, Maine's existing two physical casinos strongly oppose it.
Oxford Casino (affiliated with Churchill Downs Inc.) and Bangor Hollywood Casino (operated by Penn National Gaming) have expressed concerns, stating that the bill effectively grants the tribes a "monopoly" on online gambling, depriving commercial casinos of participation opportunities.
Dan Walker, a representative of Oxford Casino, stated at a hearing in April: "This proposal gives the tribes exclusive rights, but does not bring significant economic benefits to the whole of Maine."
Meanwhile, well-known operators such as FanDuel, BetMGM, and Fanatics have also called for amendments to LD 1164, suggesting relaxing the restrictions on the number of tribal partners to allow them to contract with multiple platforms.
Previous version of the bill was rejected in the House
Maine is not new to the attempt to introduce online casinos. As early as 2023, Representative Laura Supica had proposed a similar LD 1777 bill. The proposal was passed in the Senate but was rejected in the House by a vote of 75 to 70.
LD 1777 proposed granting the Wabanaki tribes exclusive rights to online casino licenses and set a 10% tax rate, which is lower than the current tax rate proposed by LD 1164.
Opponents at the time pointed out two core issues: one is the risk of gambling addiction and regulation, and the other is that commercial casinos were excluded from the bill, lacking a fair competitive space.
