The Cheyenne and Arapaho
Tribes of Oklahoma are suing the Bureau of Indian Affairs for rejecting a Class III gaming compact.
The tribe negotiated a new compact with Gov. Mary Fallin (R) to settle a dispute over Internet gaming. The deal calls for a share of revenues from Poker Tribes to go to the state.
Assistant Secretary Kevin Washburn, the head of the BIA, called the arrangement "illusory." He said the state failed to offer "meaningful concessions" to the tribe in exchange for a cut of the online revenues.
"Here, the proposed expansion of the compact's definition of covered games to include internet gaming by persons located outside of the United States and its territories introduces an inappropriate basis for revenue sharing in a compact," Washburn said in a November 6, 2013, letter that was posted by Turtle Talk.
"The state cannot control, nor can it offer, exclusive access to a market of patrons located entirely outside the United States and its territories," the letter continued. As a result, Washburn said the revenue sharing provision constituted an "impermissible tax" in violation of the Indian
Gaming Regulatory Act.
Turtle Talk has posted the complaint in the case, Cheyenne Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma v. Jewell.
Get the Story:
Federal officials block Oklahoma Internet gaming website, tribe sues
(The Oklahoman 12/31)
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