Tribal lands could be the next frontier for the marijuana industry in Nevada.

From across the state, tribal leaders appeared at the Nevada Legislature last week to advocate for a bill that would enable tribes to enter into state compacts allowing the medical and recreational marijuana industry to take root on tribal land.

Almost all of the tribal leaders that testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday described high unemployment and poverty rates among their people and insisted that the marijuana industry could create jobs, revenue and other opportunities in their communities.

"We lack a tribal court system, we lack a police department, we lack health services – this may help create those services," said David Decker, Chairman of the Elko Band Council for the Te-Moak Tribe of the Western Shoshone. "Just to pay for dispatch, this is very expensive. This could help us pay for all those economic securities that we currently can’t provide." 

Tildon Smart, former chairman of the Fort McDermitt Paiute-Shoshone tribe, told members of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday that about 98 percent of the approximately 1,100 tribal members are unemployed.

"Education is a major issue. I left the reservation for a while and got an education and came back," Smart said. 

He has hope that the marijuana industry could bring as many as 200 jobs to his community. 

Under Senate Bill 375, introduced by Sen. Tick Segerblom, D-Las Vegas, the state would work with individual tribes whose tribal councils have voted to legalize marijuana for either medical and recreational uses.

"The tribes would oversee what is happening on their reservation, but when they participate in the system they would have to follow the state rules," Segerblom said of the bill. 

While some tribes are only interested in opening dispensaries and others are interested additionally in production, all businesses would have to uphold the same health, security and taxation standards expected of state-licensed businesses even though the businesses would not carry state licenses, Segerblom said.

It is unclear which tribal or state agencies would regularly monitor the medical and recreational marijuana industry on tribal lands since state-licensed businesses are constantly monitored by state agencies. Between 24-hour real-time security footage and monthly walk-throughs, the regulation of the cannabis business is no easy feat.

"Nevada is the most regulated state in the country when it comes to marijuana," said Will Adler, director of the Sierra Cannabis Coalition. "There's nothing easy about marijuana." 

To even establish a medical marijuana dispensary, the state requires a minimum investment of $250,000. A lot of people spend millions, Adler said.  

If the bill passes, it would not be a national first — though it certainly would be uncommon.

In 2015, Washington state signed a 10-year pact with the Suquamish Tribe, allowing the tribe to open its own pot shop. While other tribes have tried their hands at marijuana, the start-up expense and the threat of federal intervention has smothered many of those efforts. 

"They are sticking their necks out on this one, but at some point you have to say, 'We can’t sit around and twiddle our thumbs,'" Segerblom said. "I think the tribes – because they're sovereign nations – they will have a better leg to stand on."

Banking on marijuana is a gamble in the least, especially since many tribes receive a hefty chunk of their funding from the federal government. 

"Unless you're using your federal funding for your marijuana program, it's not going to be a problem," said Trent Griffith, secretary-treasurer for the Ely Shoshone tribe in Southern Nevada. 

His tribe is already on the right track, he said. In November, the Ely Shoshone Tribe started Nevada's first state-recognized tribal cardholders program, one that allows tribe members to purchase medical marijuana in-state. 

"It's really not that we can't dispense now, but we haven't," said Griffith, noting that cardholders still have to drive several hours to Las Vegas for product. 

For several years, federal officials have operated under the guidelines of the Wilkinson Memo, which affords tribes the ability to operate under state marijuana laws. The new White House administration, however, has not been as friendly to the idea of marijuana, which is still illegal on a federal level.

In February, the Moapa Band of Paiutes outside of Las Vegas got a taste of what could be greater enforcement of the nation's continuing pot prohibition. 

The tribe received a letter from U.S. Attorney Daniel Bogden warning the tribe that they had misinterpreted the Wilkinson Memo when they decided to host one of the largest marijuana festivals in the world, the Cannabis Cup. Several cannabis-focused activities had to be cancelled as a result. 

Few of the leaders were too concerned with statements from U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who has voiced his disapproval of marijuana, and from White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer. Spicer in February said that the Department of Justice was going to increase the enforcement of the federal prohibition of recreational marijuana. 

"Going into compacts is nothing new for tribes," said Laurie Thom, chairwoman of the Yerington Paiute Tribe.

Thom, a former tribal officer and now a massage therapist, believes in the medicinal elements of marijuana. She wants her tribal members to have the same opportunity to use cannabis as others, especially those who have cancer and other chronic diseases. 

"We’re not allowed to provide that medicine, that healing medicine," Thom said. "That hurts me because I've put my hands on these people and I can feel their pain." 

Were the tribes to run into legal trouble with the federal government, the tribes would have to defend themselves, according to Segerblom. 

"We’re too paternal about tribes. They’re grown up, they can think for themselves," he said.