SUQUAMISH — The Suquamish Tribe is getting into the retail marijuana business and has changed its codes to allow recreational use within its lands.

But, some leaders say, that doesn’t mean the Tribe endorses marijuana use.

In an earlier interview, Suquamish Chairman Leonard Forsman said Washington voters’ legalization of recreational marijuana brought the issue to the Tribe’s doorstep, forcing the Tribe to deal with the issue whether it wanted to or not.

Legalization presented several unique challenges to the Suquamish Tribe. Of 7,657 acres of the Port Madison Indian Reservation, 4,076 are owned by the Tribe or individual Tribal members, over whom the Tribe has jurisdiction; 3,581 acres are owned by non-Indians, over whom the Tribe does not have jurisdiction, except in acts of violence against women on Tribal land.

If the Tribe had not legalized marijuana, “that would have created some headaches,” Suquamish Police Chief Mike Lasnier said. “[Enforcement] would have been quite complex and complicated. We actually supported the council in making the change so there wouldn’t be that disparity. We — all of law enforcement — have bigger issues to deal with, like meth and heroin.”

The Suquamish Tribe and the state Liquor and Cannabis Board signed a compact on Sept. 14. Gov. Jay Inslee signed the compact the next day; it will be in effect for 10 years.

The Suquamish Tribe has formed a business entity, Suquamish Evergreen Corporation, which will operate a marijuana retail store on Highway 305 next to the Longhouse Texaco. The store will be open by November, according to the Tribe’s communications department.

“Our decision to enter into retail operations comes after careful consideration,” Forsman said in the press release. “With the passage of I-502, we knew we needed to adapt to the changing environment surrounding our reservation and saw an opportunity to diversify our business operations.”

So, how does legalized cannabis jibe with a culture that teaches its young people the importance of alcohol-free, drug-free, tobacco-free living — a culture for whom substances were long the salve for generational traumas like loss of land, discrimination, and efforts to force assimilation?

Suquamish Tribal Council member Robin Sigo, who has a master’s degree in social work and is former director of the Tribe’s Wellness Center, said the presence of cannabis locally presents another opportunity to empower young people to make healthy choices.

“Because it’s legal, adults 21 and older get to make that choice [of whether to use cannabis]. But that doesn’t mean we endorse it,” said Sigo, who also leads the Healing of the Canoe Project, which teaches young people about making healthy lifestyle choices. “We’ve really moved away from the ‘just say no’ model and are now focused on giving youth and families information about how it might affect them, so they can get to make the decision themselves.”

She added, “When recreational marijuana sales became legal, we had a responsibility to look at that. But our commitment to keeping drugs and alcohol out of the hands of our youth remains unchanged.”

Peg Deam, a culture bearer who works for the Tribe’s Department of Community Development, agreed.

“For our children, it’s another lesson in ‘You make your choices. How do you want to live?,’ then show them the consequences. They have free will, they’re going to make their own choices. Right now, [marijuana] is hush-hush and under cover. When we bring it out … it becomes another stark reality for our kids to see and we can educate them on what they do not want in their lives.”

Lasnier added, “The fact is, people have freedom and part of that is the freedom to make choices. We can teach our young people to make good choices in their lives, teach them good values and balance that against the freedom to make choices.”

Cathlene Norris, a granddaughter and cousin of Suquamish Tribe chairpersons, has another take on legal cannabis. She was taught while growing up that marijuana “is really bad for you.”

But she’s worked with wounded warriors and other veterans and has seen medical marijuana help in them in a way that no medication could. “I have nothing against marijuana because it’s a natural herb, compared to other drugs like meth or heroin, which are chemical. There are differences in what it will do to your body,” she said.

A DIVERSIFYING ECONOMY
The Suquamish Tribe’s economic portfolio consists of Port Madison Enterprises (Suquamish Clearwater Casino Resort, White Horse Golf Club, Kiana Lodge, PME Retail, and a property management company); Port Madison Enterprises Construction Corporation; and Suquamish Seafoods.

In 2013, Port Madison Enterprises was the second-largest private-sector employer in the county, second only to Harrison Medical Center, according to the Kitsap Economic Development Alliance. The Suquamish Tribe was the eighth-largest public-sector employer.

“Our Tribe provides not only essential government services, but also extra services to help strengthen our community,” Sigo said. “We provide full scholarships for [college-bound] students. We’ve built a new youth center. We invest additional funds in our wellness center. We have been able to provide these services because we have a diverse economy.”

Suquamish Evergreen Corporation provides an opportunity to further diversify Suquamish’s economy.

According to the compact — which governs the production, processing, purchase and sale of marijuana on Suquamish land — the Tribe will charge a tax equivalent to the state excise tax on sales to non-Tribal customers on Suquamish lands. All tax revenue collected by the Tribe will be used for Tribal government services.

“Right now, it’s primarily a retail operation, [but] in the future [a grow operation] is a possibility,” Port Madison Enterprises attorney Rion Ramirez said Sept. 14. He didn’t know if the Tribe had designated an area where marijuana could be grown in the future. “That would be real speculative,” he said.

TO COMPACT OR NOT TO COMPACT
On Aug. 29, 2013, the U.S. Department of Justice issued a memorandum setting forth the eight enforcement priorities of the federal government, which emphasized preventing access to marijuana by minors, preventing the criminal element from involvement in the industry, and preventing diversion of product out of state.

On Oct. 28, 2014, the Justice Department clarified in a memo that the same priorities should guide federal enforcement priorities in Indian Country.

In May this year, Gov. Inslee signed HB 2000 into law, authorizing the state to enter into compacts with Tribal governments regarding regulation of marijuana businesses, enforcement of law, taxation, dispute resolution, and a few other issues.

The benefit to the state: “We believe that working closely with the Suquamish Tribe we can ensure a well-regulated marijuana market that protects the health and safety of Washington State citizens,” board Chairwoman Jane Rushford said in a press release. “This agreement is an excellent model for future compacts.”

The benefit to the Tribe: “The tribal business would gain access to licensed Washington marijuana businesses. That means that they could potentially wholesale to licensed producers, processors, and retailers,” wrote Robert McVay, an attorney with the Seattle-based firm Harris Moure, on May 18.

“This is an important consideration, as a lot of tribal land in Washington State is not located in or even near population centers, and those tribes may not be able to support their own retail operations. These tribes that are out in the middle of nowhere could do real business as wholesalers, but would struggle if they needed to generate a lot of foot traffic. Additionally, entering into compacts can be a political move. Tribes can also have gaming and cigarette compacts with the state, and a concession on marijuana may lead to gains in other tribal business ventures.”

Another advantage: Tribal governments can implement a lower tax rate than the state.

“Though there is an exemption for sales to tribal members, tribes entering into the retail market would want to offer lower tax rates to non-tribal members as well, in an effort to encourage customers to go out of their way to purchase from the tribe,” McVay wrote. “Tribes that directly operate retail businesses could maybe avoid the negative implications of this tax by deciding to sell product at a steep discount, as tribal marijuana business income and tribal tax revenue would both ultimately end up benefitting the tribal government.”

Some Native Nations are still grappling with how to balance marijuana sales with cultural teachings.

“I think that’s exactly why it hasn’t moved forward [at Port Gamble S’Klallam],” said Kelly Sullivan, executive director of the Port Gamble S’Klallam Tribe. “So much of our energy is put toward healthy lifestyles. Some Tribal members have a problem with us being in the alcohol and tobacco business at the casino. They think there should be more options for income than this type of thing. So, we’re not going to do something just because we can.”

Some Native Nations are just saying “no.”

The Yakama Nation, population 10,000, has banned the use of marijuana on its 1.2 million acre reservation in central Washington. And as far as the Nation is concerned, marijuana is illegal in its historical territory — 10.8 million acres of ancestral land it ceded to the United States in an 1855 treaty, but where the Yakama people maintain hunting, food-gathering and fishing rights.