Montana Gov. Vetoes Bill on Tribal Cannabis Agreements

Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte (R) has vetoed a bill that would have allowed
the state’s tribal nations and the governor’s office to establish compacts
to legalize and regulate cannabis on individual reservations. In a letter
to Speak of the House Brandon Ler (R) and Senate President Matt Regier (R),
Gianforte described the legislation as “unnecessary and duplicative.”

In May, Jeffry Stiffarm, president of the Fort Belknap Indian Community,
sent a letter to Gianforte requesting that he veto the bill, saying it
undermines “the sovereign rights” of the Tribe by “conditioning the
exercise of tribal regulatory on state approval, mandating state control
over cannabis licensing and revenue sharing, and imposing frameworks that
treat tribes as subordinate entities rather than equal sovereign
governments.”

“We believe tribal-state compacts regarding cannabis, gaming, taxation, and
other issues must be negotiated on a government-to-government basis, with
voluntary participation and respect for tribal sovereignty at the
forefront.” — Stiffarm in a letter to Gianforte

Gianforte echoed sentiments outlined in Stiffarm’s letter, saying in
addition to the state already having “over 400 agreements with Montana’s
eight tribal nations addressing a broad scope of matters” – including
cannabis regulation – he was concerned about the proposal’s “potential
impact on tribal sovereignty and self-determination as well as the
government-to-government relationship” between the state and tribal
nations.

The bill, Gianforte concluded, “may constrain the scope and flexibility of
negotiations, introduce unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles, and impose State
priorities on tribal nations,” and “interfere with the ability of both
parties to engage in open, meaningful, and equal negotiations as
sovereigns, potentially weakening cooperation and collaboration.”