Efforts by the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) to advance its bid for a casino license in southeastern Massachusetts were hampered this week by state and local officials who say they want more information about the tribe’s plans before taking steps that could keep the tribe in the running.

Tribal chairman Cheryl Andrews-Maltais, who is working against a July 31 deadline to satisfy certain state-mandated requirements to be considered to build one of up to three resort casinos authorized by gaming legislation enacted last November, has been vague about whether she has firm backers or specific locations identified for a casino. The Aquinnah tribe wants to compete for the one license that has been earmarked for an American Indian tribe. The Mashpee Wampanoag tribe, the only other federally recognized tribe in the state, has previously announced plans to build a casino in Taunton.

A small tribal delegation, led by Mrs. Andrews-Maltais, met with municipal leaders in Fall River, Freetown and Lakeville this week about potential plans to build a gaming facility in one of those communities. The meetings followed requests to the three municipalities for a referendum vote within the next 90 days to test public support for a casino.

Fall River mayor William Flanagan said Tuesday that while his meeting with the tribe was very positive, he was unwilling to call for a vote without details about where the casino would be located.

“[The tribe] indicated to myself and members of my team that they had land under option in the city of Fall River, they did have financials in place that would allow them to move forward with construction of a casino, but did not disclose to us where the land was or who the financial backers were,” he said.

“Even though I’m a strong supporter of the construction of a resort style casino, it depends where that casino is being proposed,” he said. “It may work in one section of our city but it man not in another. Until they disclose the location I would not be willing to advocate for a referendum vote . . . it’s not fair to the citizens.”

Under the state’s new gaming regulations, tribes have until July 31 to enter into a compact agreement with Governor Deval Patrick for a casino, after which the state will go through a public bidding process for the other two licenses.

The Aquinnah tribe last week sent a letter to Gov. Patrick requesting the state enter into formal gaming compact negotiations. This week, the state’s deputy chief legal counsel, E. Abim Thomas, responded in a return letter that the state “needed evidence” that the tribe had purchased or entered into a purchase agreement for a parcel of land and a vote had been scheduled in the proposed host community for the approval of the casino.

In an e-mail to the Gazette yesterday Mrs. Andrews-Maltais described the tribe’s plans in general terms, saying it is in “the final stages of solidifying a predevelopment and development agreement.” She added that the tribe has a number of potential partners “who have expressed their interest in working with us.”

“[The meetings] are meant to begin the process of reopening the dialogue we’ve had over the past 16 years,” the chairman wrote. “We’ve had a very positive response . . . they have been friendly, engaging, receptive and of course very curious for the details and are anxious to continue our dialogue to find out more about our plans.”

Several Vineyard tribal members and council members said they learned of the tribe’s intention to pursue a casino license by reading quotes from Mrs. Andrews-Maltais in regional newspapers. The tribal council has not been formally notified of the plans, several people said.

The tribal council established the Aquinnah Wampanoag Gaming Corporation in 2003, the chairman said, and delegated the responsibility of handling the gaming initiative to the corporation. The chairman said the gaming corporation is “responsible for all of the leg work, negotiations and contracting of experts and professionals in order to facilitate and help us run the gaming operation.” Mrs. Andrews-Maltais said she will have the final signature on any documents.

“Upon the directive of the tribal council — and in some cases our general membership — I would be responsible for singing any agreements and or compacts in the capacity of chairwoman of the tribe,” she wrote.

The tribe won federal recognition in 1987 and in a ruling in 2004, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that the tribe had waived part of its sovereignty when it signed a settlement agreement with the town of Aquinnah in 1986, making the tribe subject to state and local zoning rules for land use projects.

In a letter obtained by the Gazette dated 1997 from the United States Department of the Interior, the federal bureau that oversees American Indian affairs, the department ruled the tribe could operate a Class II gaming establishment on land then under consideration in Fall River. Under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988 a Class II facility can have bingo or non-banked card games, and only a Class III facility can have wagering games or other traditional casino-style gaming. The letter from the department of interior makes no reference to the tribe operating a Class III facility.

Mrs. Andrews-Maltais said she is confident the tribe is in the position to have additional lands taken into trust, the process that allows the tribe to use land in other parts of the state for commercial purposes.

“We have all options available to us and our membership has expressed to us that we are to pursue all options to determine what option will be best for our people,” she wrote.

Plans for a casino date back to 1994, when the tribe partnered with a subsidiary of Carnival Hotels and Casinos as the state was considering legislation to legalize gambling. That legislation later failed. Financial statements and an audit from 2011 obtained by the Gazette last week show the tribe still owes millions of dollars in outstanding debt from the Carnival deal — $8 million to Carnival and $5.6 million to a private consulting agreement.

Members of the gaming corporation attended the meetings on the mainland this week, including Mrs. Andrews-Maltais’s sister Naomi Carney, Keith Marden and Lloyd Marden. All three members live off-Island in the southeastern Massachusetts area. Finances for this group are still unclear, and the chairman said the expenses for the gaming corporation have been out of pocket “in an attempt to minimize our upfront debt.”

Meanwhile the clock is ticking on the July 31 deadline, and the Fall River mayor said the tribe is open to working with the city in finding alternative tracts of land if the land they claim to have is “not suitable for our community.” Mr. Flanagan said he’s also been contacted by several private developers interested in building a casino in Fall River, as well as the Pocasset Wampanoag tribe, who are not federally recognized.