BIA rejects deal for Stockbridge-Munsee off-reservation casino

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

As expected, the Bureau of Indian Affairs rejected a compact to authorize an off-reservation casino for the Stockbridge Munsee Band of Mohican Indians of Wisconsin.

The tribe signed the compact with former New York governor David Paterson (D). The deal ended the tribe's land claim in exchange for a casino in the Catskills, a region near New York City.

News reports did not detail the reasons for the rejection of the deal. But it's likely the BIA was concerned because the tribe argued that its land claim could be settled without an act of Congress.

Get the Story:
Department of Interior Kills Casino Deal (The Madison County Courier 2/19)
Plan for Indian Casino in the Catskills Is Rejected (The New York Times 2/19)
SNI President Applauds Fed’s Catskill Move (The Jamestown Post-Journal 2/22)