Inside the marijuana grow facility on the Flandreau Santee Sioux Reservation in South Dakota. Photo by Dana Ferguson / Sioux Falls Argus Leader / Twitter

The Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe gave South Dakota lawmakers a tour of its marijuana operation that's due to open on New Year's Eve.

Five lawmakers -- three Democrats and two Republicans -- saw the facility where the drug is being grown, according to news reports. They also toured a building that's being converted into a lounge where the public can buy and smoke marijuana under controlled circumstances.

"We've decided to be as stringent as possible initially – we can always loosen up," President Tony Reider told lawmakers, The Sioux Falls Argus Leader reported. "We don't want this stuff hitting the streets, we don't want to sell it by the pound."

The tribe is converting the Royal River Family Entertainment Center on the reservation into a 10,000 square-foot marijuana and entertainment lounge. The site is adjacent to the Royal River Casino, which includes a hotel where patrons can stay.

The operation will open to the public on December 31. The tribe is expecting about 1,000 to show up -- all of the rooms at the hotel are already booked and more are being planned to meet the demand.

The tribal council voted 5 to 1 in June to legalize marijuana on the reservation. The council also adopted comprehensive set of laws and policies to address the sale and use of the drug.

Marijuana otherwise remains illegal under federal law. But the Department of Justice opened the door to legal marijuana in Indian Country with the 2014 Wilkinson memo.

Despite the shifts in policy, the operation faces a major challenge from Attorney General Marty Jackley, who has warned non-Indians that they can still be prosecuted for buying or consuming marijuana on the reservation. The claim was disputed on the tour the tribe offered today.

"Although the state may maintain jurisdiction, this is a victimless crime … And because we are a sovereign nation, the state would need to either get consent through tribal warrant or by permission," tribal attorney Seth Pearlman told the Argus Leader.

Get the Story:
Lawmaker support slim at tour of Flandreau facility (The Sioux Falls Argus Leader 10/16)
Inside Marijuana Grow Facility On Flandreau Santee Sioux Reservation (KELO 10/16)
State Lawmakers Tour Pot Farm On Flandreau Reservation (AP 10/16)
State lawmakers touring marijuana facility in Flandreau (KSFY 10/16)

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