Opinion: NIGC review process puts tribes at a disadvantage

Monday, April 2, 2012  

"One area of vital importance to many Indian tribes is the relationship of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (“IGRA”) to the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”). The National Indian Gaming Commission (“NIGC”) requires Indian tribes entering into management contracts for gaming to comply with NEPA requirements when construction is involved. This position puts Indian gaming enterprises at a severe disadvantage to other businesses, which do not have to spend millions of dollars on NEPA compliance for the same project, nor undertake months or years of delay resulting from the NEPA process before beginning construction. The delay has the effect of outdating market analyses, dramatically increasing project costs, involving the general public in the sovereign decisions of tribal governments, and deterring potential investors.

The NIGC should be excused from compliance with NEPA because there is no way that tribes can complete full NEPA environmental reviews within the time period set out by Congress for the approval or disapproval of management contracts. Courts have found time conflicts excuse NEPA compliance. See Flint Ridge Development Co. v. Scenic Rivers Ass’n of Okla., 426 U.S. 776, 788-89 (1976). Continuing to require NEPA compliance for gaming management contracts is a waste of tribal, management contractor, and federal resources."

Get the Story:
Andrea Lord Goldstein: Keep Your NEPA Out of My Gaming Management Contract (Indian Country Today 4/1)