On Tuesday, the Obama administration made a move that could allow for more casino expansion in the United States. The Interior Department rescinded a rule passed by the Bush Administration in 2008 that limited the ability of Native American tribes to open casinos.
The 2008 rule required tribal casinos to be within commuting distance from the reservations. That limitation led to the rejection of many casino applications because the proposed site was too far away. In New York alone, 22 applications were rejected due to the rule. Chuck Schumer, a New York Senator, lobbied to have the rule overturned and on Tuesday, the Interior Department did just that.
Of course, doing away with the Bush-era rule doesn’t mean there will suddenly be a rash of new tribal casinos throughout the country. There is a lot of bureaucracy and red tape to get through for any tribal casino, let alone an off-reservation one. Since the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act was passed in 1988, only five tribes have received permission to build a casino off the reservation. Only three of those 23 years were due to the Bush rule.
Still, in a time when many jurisdictions are looking to casinos as a way to boost the economy, this could lead to a casino expansion. There are currently 10 applications for off-reservation tribal casinos being reviewed by the Department of the Interior. For the casino to be built, the Interior Department would first have to take the non-reservation land into trust. Then, among other procedures, the tribe would have to obtain a determination from the federal government that a casino at that site would be in the best interests of both the tribe and the surrounding community.
Tags: gambling expansion, tribal casinos
