The Senate Indian Affairs Committee is holding an oversight hearing this morning on Indian gaming.

The hearing will focus on the recent court decision involving the Minimum Internal Control Standards (MICS) for Class III gaming. On August 28, a federal judge ruled that the standards are beyond the authority of the National Indian Gaming Commission.

The decision was in response to a lawsuit initiated by the Colorado River Indian Tribes from Arizona. The tribe argued that the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act gives authority over Class III gaming to tribes and states through the tribal-state compacting process.

The NIGC has taken a narrow reading of the ruling. The agency plans to keep enforcing the MICS on all tribal gaming operations except for the CRIT casino.

The hearing this morning takes place at 9:30am. A live broadcast can be accessed at http://indian.senate.gov.

Court Decision:
Colorado River Indian Tribes v. NIGC | Order (August 24, 2005)

Relevant Links:
Colorado River Indian Tribes - http://www.critonline.com
Senate Indian Affairs Committee - http://indian.senate.gov

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