A majority of Rhode Island residents say Congress should restore the ability of the Narragansett Tribe to engage in gaming on its reservation.

In a survey conducted by the University of Massachusetts–Dartmouth Center for Policy Analysis, 56 percent supported the repeal of a rider that blocked the tribe from the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. Only 28 percent said they opposed the move.

The tribe falls under a settlement act that granted the state civil and criminal jurisdiction on the reservation. But other tribe with similar acts, and tribes in Public Law 280 states, have been allowed to engage in gaming under IGRA.

The tribe had won a lawsuit to that effect but the late Sen. John Chafee (R) inserted a rider into an appropriations bill that blocked the tribe from IGRA. The tribe has since tried to open a casino off the reservation, which state voters have rejected twice.

Get the Story:
R.I. residents favor gambling rights for Narragansetts (The Providence Business News 2/27)
R.I. Poll: Narragansetts Should Have Casino (The New London Day 2/27)
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