Casino Stalker
Obama still working on off-reservation policy
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
The Obama administration is still working on its off-reservation gaming policy, assistant secretary Larry EchoHawk, the head of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, said on Monday.
EchoHawk said the Interior Department was reviewing Bush-era restrictions that make it nearly impossible for tribes to acquire land away from existing reservations. He said the prior administration effectively "slammed the brakes on future off-reservation gaming."
"Along the way, they just stopped the fee-to-trust process," EchoHawk said at the National Congress of American Indians annual convention in Palm Springs, California. "We will not do that."
But EchoHawk wasn't ready to make any announcements regarding changes in policy. He said he will "listen very carefully" to arguments on all sides of the issue and is open to tribes that want to discuss off-reservation gaming.
Stay Connected
Contact Us
indianz@indianz.com202 630 8439 (THEZ)
Search
Top Indian Gaming Stories
Trending in Gaming
1 Catawba Nation continues work on controversial casino in North Carolina
2 Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes move forward with casino expansion
3 Poarch Band of Creek Indians said to be on Trump's radar
4 Hopi Tribe officially joins Indian gaming industry with approved compact
5 Seminole Tribe paid just $50M for casino Donald Trump built for $1.2B
2 Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes move forward with casino expansion
3 Poarch Band of Creek Indians said to be on Trump's radar
4 Hopi Tribe officially joins Indian gaming industry with approved compact
5 Seminole Tribe paid just $50M for casino Donald Trump built for $1.2B
More Stories
• Opinion: Rolling the dice on Alabama bingo• Sisseton-Wahpeton casino executive fired
Indian Gaming Archive