Alabama-Coushatta Tribe sees more crowds at casino as court fight looms

Monday, August 15, 2016

Gaming machines at the Naskila Entertainment gaming facility in Livingston, Texas. Photo from Facebook

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The Alabama-Coushatta Tribe is reporting stronger crowds at its casino, the one the state of Texas wants to shut down.

Although the 15,000 square-foot Naskila Entertainment opened in May, the tribe only recently began boosting its advertising efforts, The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported.

“We are beginning to reach out into local regions and we have started doing promotions,” casino spokesperson Carlos Bullock told the paper. “We are doing mail-outs that just started in the last few weeks, reaching out to local regions.”

The move comes as the tribe and the state seek to resolve the legality of the facility, which only offers Class II games. The parties submitted a joint motion and proposed a briefing schedule that could see a decision come sometime in the spring of 2017.

In 2002, the state forced the closure of the tribe's prior casino. The federal courts ruled that a provision in the Alabama-Coushatta Restoration Act places the reservation under the state's gambling laws.

But the National Indian Gaming Commission last October determined that the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act "impliedly repealed" the restoration act. The tribe and the state are seeking a decision on that argument as part of the case.

Naskila means "dogwood" in the Alabama language.

Read More on the Story:
Jackpots, court challenges found at Indian gaming center in East Texas (The Fort Worth 8/14)

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Indian problems in East Texas (The Orange Leader 8/8)