National Indian Gaming Association Chairman Ernest Stevens Jr. testified about Internet gambling at a hearing in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday.
Stevens said tribes are concerned about impacts to the $28 billion Indian gaming industry. He offered six major points that he said lawmakers should consider: Indian tribes are sovereign governments with a right to operate, regulate, tax, and license Internet gaming, and those rights must not be subordinated to any non-federal authority.Internet wagering is banned by federal law. But in 2006, NIGA advocated for a provision in the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act to allow Internet gaming if a tribe and state agree to it under a Class III gaming compact. So far, however, no tribes and states have agreed to Internet gambling. Get the Story:
Internet gaming authorized by Indian tribes must be available to customers in any locale where Internet gaming is not criminally prohibited.
Consistent with long-held federal law and policy, tribal Internet gaming revenues must not be subject to tax.
Existing tribal government rights under Tribal-State Compacts and the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act must be respected.
The legislation must not open up the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act for amendments.
Federal legalization of Internet gaming must provide positive economic benefits for Indian country.