United Keetoowah Band running casino amid land status issue

Monday, March 28, 2011  

In September 2000, the National Indian Gaming Commission concluded that a casino being operated by the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians was not on Indian land.

More than 10 years later, the Keetoowah Cherokee Casino is still up and running. A federal court injunction bars the state from asserting jurisdiction on the site until the NIGC can "compile a complete record" on the matter.

Has the NIGC done so? It's not clear but The Tulsa World noted the existence of an Interior Department legal opinion that suggested the issue was decided in June 2010 and that it went against the tribe.

According to recent figures, the casino took in $13.4 million in revenues.

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United Keetoowah Band operates casino in Tahlequah without paying fees to state (The Tulsa World 3/27)