News from I nelien Country
Page 10
Tribes challenge ruling over
off-reservation casinos
LAS VEGAS (AP)^—A ma
jor policy change this year by the
D epartm ent o f In terio r will
slow the grow th , o f the
multibillion-dollar Indian casino
industry, which has gained con
troversy for developments in
communities far from reserva
tion land.
The change, made in a series
of letters and a memo issued in
early January, essentially rejected
22 applications for new off-res
ervation casinos, by hinging their
approval on a single criterion:
the distance from the reserva
tion.
While the change was hailed
by opponents of the sprawling
business that raked in $25.1 bil
lion in gambling revenues in
2006, many tribes attacked the
ruling as unfair and unjust, rob
bing them of what many con
sider their only economic oppor
tunity.
“We were shocked by the lack
of due process involved,” said
Mark Van N orm an, executive
director of the National Indian
Gaming Association. “The De
partment o f Interior created a
new regulatory standard one day,
didn’t notify anybody and ap
plied it the next day.”
The St. Regis Mohawks in
upstate New York, one o f two
tribes that sued the department,
called the decision racist and
paternalistic because it purported
to look out for the best inter
ests of the tribes by supporting
the integrity of reservation life.
“I t’s outrageous for us as
Mohawk people to be told that
we can’t sustain our community
relations,”' said St. Regis Chief
Lorraine White.
White said male members of
the tribe had for decades trav
eled to faraway construction
sites to support their families on
the reservation in upstate New
York.
“W hat a bunch o f bulls—
when you’re talking to the very
people who »actually built New
York City with their hands,”
White said.
When its development part
ner, Empire Resorts Inc., aban
doned it following the change,
the St. Regis tribe dropped its
suit and called on Congress to
overturn the policy or have its
application grandfathered in.
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Longtime Miami Nation chief dies
MIAMI, Okla. (AP)— Floyd
Ernest Leonard, the longtime
chief of the Miami Nation, died
Saturday, tribal officials said.
Leonard, 82, died in a Joplin,
Mo., hospital following an unspeci
fied illness. He spent 27. years as
the Miami Nation’s chief.
“He was a great man and a
great chief,” said Tom Gamble,
the tribe’s second chief.
Leonard was born in Picher
in 1925 and served in the U.S.
Coast Guard during World War
II. He began serving the Miami
Nation in elected positions in
1953, and first became chief in
1974, serving eight years.
He returned as the tribe’s
chief in 1989 and served until
his death.
“I always fou n d C hief
Leonard to be interested in In
dian affairs,” said Wyandotte
Nation Chief Leaford Bearskin.
“He supported all programs,
locally and nationally. ... He was
a wonderful chief.”
Leonard is survived by his
wife of 61 years, Patricia. Funeral
services are set for Tuesday at the
Miami Nation cemetery.
Border casinos especially
profitable for tribes
TULSA, Okla. (AP)— Casi
nos operated by the sta te ’s
American Indian tribes that are
located near the state’s borders
are proving especially profitable.
State
Treasurer
Scott
Meacham estimates that 25 per
cent of total casino revenues in
Oklahoma come from out-of-state
pockets, particularly people from
Texas, Kansas and Missouri who
cross the border to gamble.
“We think that number is a
modest estimate,” he said.
The Choctaw Nation, Kiowa
Tribe, Chickasaw N ation,
Comanche Nation, Cherokee
Nation, Tonkawa Tribe and sev
eral Ottawa County tribes are
among those operating casinos
located near a border. The only
major highway border crossing
w ithout a casino is Interstate
40 in w e ste rn O klah o m a,
where the state borders Texas.
The Tonkawa Tribe built its
Native Lights Casino along U.S.
Highway 77 near the Kansas
border. The Choctaws has a ca-
sino in Pocola, near the Arkan-
sas state line, and the tribe spent
$18 million to refurbish it. They
also operate border-easnios m .
Durartt and Grant.
•
Janie Dillard, the Choctaw
Nation’s executive director o f
gambling, said 68 percent of the
Pocola casino’s customers come
from out o f state. She said the
tribe focuses its marketing efforts
in western Arkansas communities
including Fort Smith, Fayetteville
and Van Buren.
Two tribes located nearer to
Texas, the Kiowas and the
Comanches, operate casinos in
Devol within walking distance of
each other. Oscar Codopony, the
Comanche Nation Gaming Com
mission chairman, said gamblers
from Texas routinely walk be
tween the two facilities.
“We watch the dollars, and we
can see that the Red River site
does outperform our Lawton
facility,” Codopony said.
According to the National
Indian Gaming Commission,
Oklahoma has about 94 Indian
casinos.
(541) 475-2578
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