This rule establishes procedures for Indian tribes and States to submit Tribal-State compacts and compact amendments, governing the conduct of class III gaming activities on the tribe's Indian lands located within that State, for review and approval by the Secretary of the Interior.

The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA), 25 U.S.C. 2701-2721, was signed into law on October 17, 1988. IGRA authorizes class III gaming activities on Indian lands when authorized by an approved ordinance, located in a State that permits such gaming and conducted in conformance with a Tribal-State compact. See 25 U.S.C. 2710. The Indian tribe and State must submit each compact and compact amendment to the Secretary for approval or disapproval. See 25 U.S.C. 2710(d)(8)(A), (B) and (C).

On July 2, 2008, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) published a proposed rule establishing the procedures for submitting Tribal-State compacts and compact amendments to the Secretary for approval. See 73 FR 37907. The original comment period ended on September 2, 2008. BIA extended the comment period until September 22, 2008. See 73 FR 51255 (September 2, 2008).