United Keetoowah Band celebrates BIA approval of casino land

Tuesday, July 31, 2012  

The United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma won last-minute approval on Monday to keep its casino open.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs approved a land-into-trust application for two acres covering the Keetoowah Cherokee Casino. The decision stated that the site is within the former Cherokee Reservation.

Generally, the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act bars gaming on land acquired in trust after 1988. But Section 20 contains an exception for land within a former reservation in Oklahoma.

The Cherokee Nation has previously indicated it will fight the BIA's approval.

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