Casino Stalker | Legislation | Litigation

Rep. Franks takes aim at Tohono O'odham Nation casino again

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Rep. Trent Franks (R-Arizona) is introducing a bill that seeks to prevent the Tohono O'odham Nation from opening an off-reservation casino in Arizona.

But instead of going after the tribe's land claim settlement act, Franks wants to ban all forms of gaming on newly acquired lands in the Phoenix area. That would cover the tribe's site for the West Valley Resort.

The prohibition only applies to land acquired in trust after January 1, 2013, according to a draft of the bill that was posted by The Phoenix New Times. The ban expires in 2027 -- when the tribe's current Class III gaming compact expires.

The bill comes as the state goes back to court in hopes of preventing the Bureau of Indian Affairs from placing the tribe's land in trust. The courts so far have ruled that the Gila Bend Indian Reservation Lands Replacement Act of 1986 mandates the acquisition.

Get the Story:
Hearing on tribal casino near Glendale begins (The Arizona Republic 4/9)
Trent Franks, Arizona Congressman, Expected to Propose Law -- Again -- to Block Tohono O'odham Nation's Plans for West Valley Casino (The Phoenix New Times 4/9)