Indian Gaming > Two tribes await action on long-delayed casinos

November 20, 2009

Two tribes await action on long-delayed casinos

The Cowlitz Tribe of Washington and the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs Reservation in Oregon hope the Obama administration will advance their casino projects.

The Cowlitz Tribe has a final environmental impact statement in its favor. But the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Carcieri v. Salazar has prevented the Interior Department from approving a land-into-trust application, a tribal leader said.

We are fairly confident even though we weren’t federally recognized until 2002, we were still under the jurisdiction of the federal government in 1934,”Vice Chairman Phil Harju told Indian Country Today.

The Warm Springs Tribes expect a final environmental impact statement for its off-reservation casino to be released soon. But the Obama administration hasn't said what it will do about a Bush-era policy that makes it nearly impossible for tribes to acquire land away from existing reservations.

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Casino projects await Interior decision (Indian Country Today 11/20)