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Bill to require good‑faith timelines for tribal tobacco compacts moves through Revenue Committee hearing
Summary
Sen. Jane Raybould introduced LB1037 to require the governor or designee to negotiate in good faith and meet timelines when federally recognized tribes request tobacco‑tax compacts; proponents including Omaha Tribe counsel said the state had previously tied tobacco talks to unrelated tribal policy decisions such as medical cannabis.
Senator Jane Raybould told the committee LB1037 seeks to modernize the statutory process for negotiating tobacco tax and Master Settlement Agreement (MSA) compacts between the state and federally recognized tribes by requiring good‑faith negotiations, reasonable timelines, and by prohibiting the state from declining or delaying talks based solely on unrelated tribal policy choices.
John Cartier, an attorney for the Omaha Tribe, and other tribal advocates testified that previous compact negotiations stalled after the tribe adopted a lawful medical cannabis program and alleged the executive branch used unrelated issues to decline or delay tobacco negotiations. Cartier described a written compact submitted by the tribe with enforcement, stamping, and MSA protections and said the state declined to return a redline or counterproposal after initial discussions.
Proponents argued that clearer statutory language and timelines would protect state MSA interests and provide both sides certainty while preventing unrelated retaliation. The bill's sponsor and supporters cited comparable models in Minnesota, Oklahoma and Washington.
Committee members asked about separation‑of‑powers concerns referenced in an attorney‑general opinion; proponents said similar statutes exist in other states and defended constitutionality. No opponents testified in person and the committee closed the hearing after sponsor closing remarks.
