North Fork Rancheria faces long odds on casino

Monday, April 7, 2008  

The North Fork Rancheria of Mono Indians is facing tribal opposition as it seeks to gain federal approval for an off-reservation casino.

The tribe wants 305 acres placed in trust. The site is about 35 miles from the reservation and tribal tribes say that's too far.

"It's like saying the French are going to put a casino in Germany," Alison Harvey, the executive director of the California Tribal Business Alliance, told The Fresno Bee.

The tribe is pursuing the casino under the two-part determination process of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. The law requires the tribe to gain federal approval and state approval, something that has only happened three times since the passage of IGRA in 1988.

But before the tribe gets to that hurdle, the Bureau of Indian Affairs has to review the land-into-trust application. New guidelines issued by the Bush administration make it harder for tribes to obtain land away from existing reservations.

A decision won't be made until the end of the year at the earliest, George Skibine, the director of the BIA's Office of Indian Gaming Management, told the paper.

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Off-reservation casino bid a gamble (The Fresno Bee 4/7)
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