Wichita and Affiliated Tribes Can’t Dodge Revenue Share in Oklahoma
A federal justice inwards Oklahoma has ruled that the Wichita and Affiliated Tribes remains de jure obligated to make water casino revenue-share payments to the state. The folk had argued that recent gaming elaboration authorized past the tell legislature, such as online lotteries, violated its gaming exclusivity rights.
The federation of tribes sued Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) inward 2020, claiming that the country had breached the 2004 compact. That deal established that revenue-share payments would live made inwards paying back for exclusivity on Class III cassino games.
The body politic countersued, complaining the folk had “breached the Compact past weakness to remand all material exclusivity fees owed to the State.”
Did the State Change the Laws?
The compacts body politic the tribes would live granted “substantial exclusivity . . . within the outside boundaries of Sooner State inwards respect to the covered games,” provided “the say does non modification its laws after the efficacious appointment of this Compact . . . to allow any additional electronic or machine gaming within Oklahoma.”
Lawyers for the federation of tribes asserted that a relevant convert had occurred, and sure actions by the nation legislature had rendered revenue part payments void and void. These included a 2018 banker's bill that permitted “additional electronic gaming” by allowing players to participate inwards drawing sponsored promotions and second-chance drawings via the internet.
Meanwhile, a twelvemonth earlier, Oklahoma enacted an amendment to the Oklahoma State Tribal Gaming Act (STGA). That action mechanism removed restrictions on the identification number of hours a racetrack was allowed to conduct authorized gaming. Previously, they had been special to 106 hours per hebdomad and no more to a greater extent than 18 hours per day.
In an 18-page ruling, Chief US District Judge Timothy DeGuisti said the case boiled push down the question: “Did the State exchange its laws after September 2006 [which is when the heavyset took effect] to let any additional electronic or machine gaming within Oklahoma?”
He set that it did not, and accused the federation of tribes of taking sure provisions within the powder compact out of context.
‘Out of Context’ Gaming
Regarding the lottery, DeGuisti noted that the tribe is not authorised to conduct lottery games, which way the tribe’s exclusivity is not impinged by the state’s procedure of such games online.
Thus, the Margaret Court finds that changes in Sooner State practice of law that feature expanded approach to lottery games and promotions come non be ‘additional electronic gaming’ that impinges the Tribe’s substantive exclusivity to deal covered games,” wrote DeGuisti.
The judge also rejected the whim that expanding the hours of military operation for authorised games constitutes “additional electronic gaming.” These were not an additional form of gaming, dictated DeGuisti. They were the same games that were authorised past STGA, but kept switched on longer.
It is unclear whether the tribe, which owns the Sugar Creek Casino on its reserve in Hinton, intends to appeal.
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