Casino Arizona Tribe
PHOENIX (CN) – The Tohono O’odham Nation sued Arizona on Monday, for refusing to certify tribal employees in a last-ditch effort to stop the tribe from opening a new casino.
The O’odham claim Gov. Doug Ducey, Attorney General Mark Brnovich, and Gaming Director Daniel Bergin are violating the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act and the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution.
The Tohono O’odham (Desert People), formerly known as Papago, have a 3 million acre main reservation west of Tucson. There are more than 25,000 tribal members, though less than half live on the main reservation, which, among other things, is home to the Kitt Peak astronomical observatory. The O’odham, whose pre-Contact enemies were the Apaches, or O’op (Enemies), are the only large Native American tribe that never was at war with the U.S. government, and never were forced off their traditional homeland.
Arizona has fought the tribe since it announced its plans for the casino in 2009. The $400 million casino, already under construction in Glendale, will employ more than 1,000 people, the O’odham say.
In its lawsuit, the tribe disputes Attorney General Bergin’s claim that state law allows the Arizona Department of Gaming (ADG) to block the casino by refusing to certify vendors or employees or to approve the facility.
“They don’t want to certify any of the work,” tribal Chairman Edward Manuel told the Arizona Daily Star. “They don’t even want to inspect the facility to certify.”
“Defendants assert that ADG has state-law authority to decide that the Nation has engaged in ‘disqualifying conduct’ that ‘nullif[ies]’ the Nation’s federal right to engage in Class III gaming at the West Valley Resort,” the lawsuit states.
The tribe denies it, pointing out that a federal judge ruled for the O’odham and against the state in 2013.
“This court rejected that claim, holding that that ‘the Nation’s construction of a casino on the Glendale-area land will not violate the Compact’ and ‘is expressly permitted by [Indian Gaming Regulatory Act],'” the complaint states.
The state appealed.
Then-Attorney General Tom Horne sued the O’odham in 2011, claiming the casino would violate Arizona Proposition 202, of 2002, which allowed casinos only on existing tribal lands, unless exempted under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. The O’odham’s main reservation is west of Tucson, and the West Valley Resort & Casino is on federal trust land more than 100 miles away from tribal headquarters in Sells.
Despite the federal ruling, Arizona is throwing a wrench into the nation’s plan to open the casino by the end of the year, taking the position that “the Nation committed ‘fraud’ in the negotiation of the Compact; for that reason, ADG refuses to issue certifications and approvals relating to the West Valley Resort, even though IGRA and the Compact expressly authorize the project.”
The Attorney General’s Office advised ADG in an April letter that “(i)n determining whether to certify the proposed casino, [ADG] is vested with the statutory discretion to determine whether the application is at odds with the public welfare and safety and/or is consistent with the thorough and fair regulation of gaming in Arizona.”
In another letter, newly elected Republican Gov. Doug Ducey told Bergin that evidence of fraudulent inducement would “be grounds for the denial of the regulatory approvals necessary to operate the proposed casino,” and said that Bergin should “communicate those grounds to the [Nation] at the earliest appropriate date.”
Chairman Manuel says Arizona is exceeding its authority. The federal government, not the states, have always had primary authority to deal with Indian tribes.
“Construction of the Nation’s casino has been under way for 10 months and this extreme political effort to stop this important project cannot be allowed,“ Manuel said in a statement. “Arizona communities, businesses and workers support this project and the Nation remains committed to making sure it moves forward.”
The ADG on June 9 provided the O’odham with new forms to certify employees, with this language: “Please be advised this application for certification is valid only for authorized Arizona gaming facilities. Employees of any location considered by the State to be unauthorized, or in pending litigation with the State concerning whether it is authorized, would be outside the approval granted through State Certification. Employees of unauthorized facilities may be subject to legal and/or regulatory risks.”
Manuel looks at Arizona’s actions with a cold eye.
“The irony here is that in their effort to try to stop this project, the state originally accused the nation of violating our Compact,” Manuel said. “Now that a federal court has confirmed that the compact allows the nation to operate the West Valley Resort, the state refuses to abide by that decision.”
The O’odham seek declaratory judgment that Arizona’s authority is preempted by federal law, that it has no right to enforce sanctions on the casino, and that it may not interfere with the opening of the casino.
The tribe is represented by its Attorney General Jonathan Jantzen and by Seth Waxman with Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr, in Washington, D.C.
In 1964, the Tribe founded its first Constitution and established a Tribal Council. Located 13 miles south of Yuma, AZ, the Reservation is home to Cocopah Casino, Cocopah Resort & Conference Center, Cocopah Rio Colorado Golf Course, Cocopah Museum, Cocopah RV & Golf Resort, Cocopah Speedway and Wild River Family Entertainment Center. The Arizona Indian Gaming Association was established in November 21, 1994, by Arizona tribal leaders. The Association is committed to advancing the lives of Indian peoples – economically, socially and politically – so Indian Tribes in Arizona can achieve their goal of self-reliance. The Arizona Indian Gaming Association was established in November 21, 1994, by Arizona tribal leaders. The Association is committed to advancing the lives of Indian peoples – economically, socially and politically – so Indian Tribes in Arizona can achieve their goal of self-reliance. Mazatzal hotel & casino. 'close enough to get away from it all!' Phone - 800-777-play. Street address - highway 87, mile marker 251. payson, az 85541. Mailing address - po box 1820. payson, az 85547. The tribe suspended all gaming and resort operations at Talking Stick Resort and Casino Arizona from March 18 to March 31, according to a press release. No employees or guests have been identified.
Indian Country construction boasts a variety of projects as Arizona’s Indian tribes expand reservation services
In September 1970, the Gila River Indian Reservation finished the first phase of construction of a $1M career center at Sacaton. It’s taken some time, but since then, much has been built on Indian reservations in Arizona — and the momentum continues.
Casinos, healthcare facilities, government offices and schools have sprung from tribal lands in the past 40 years, and continue to do so. But while casinos remain the largest projects on the reservation, the mix of projects continues to expand.
Take, for instance, the $100M spring training facility for the Arizona Diamondbacks and Colorado Rockies being constructed by the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, set to open in February 2011. Take note of Scottsdale Pavilions, SRP-MIC’s retail center on Indian Bend Road across the Loop 101. There’s the tribe’s recently opened Talking Stick Resort encompassing a 240,000 SF casino in a 15-story tower that houses almost 500 rooms. And the SRP-MIC’s Scottsdale business park, the Chaparral Business Center.
Projects such as these signal a growing trend among Indian tribes in Arizona of diversifying business development. And it sends a message that construction is still happening on the reservation, despite economic hardships worldwide.
“There are still opportunities there,” compared to the rest of the construction industry, says Matt Richards, project executive for Arviso/Okland Construction JV, which is 51% Navajo owned.
For Indian tribes nationally, “most construction work seems to be still centered around casinos,” Richards says. “What we’re working on, though, is hospitals, schools and government buildings. We’ve done hospitality projects, as well.
“One of the recent trends in our industry for tribal projects has been the multipurpose judicial complexes,” Richards says. “We are fortunate enough to be working with the Navajo Nation on two upcoming judicial complexes, one in Tuba City and another in Crownpoint, N.M. There have been multiple similar projects throughout the region, including the Pueblo of Isleta, the Pascua Yaqui, Colorado River Indian Tribe, and others.
Much of this work has been the result of an ARRA-funded (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009) program for the Department of Justice, which allocated money for the construction of tribal jails.”
Kimberly Silentman-Kanuho, coordinator for American Indian Initiatives at Arizona State University’s Del E. Webb School of Construction, sees a broad mixture of projects happening.
“There is so much going on out there,” Silentman-Kanuho says. “There’s transportation — highways, roads and bridges. There’s also community and cultural centers, and health facilities. It’s not just gaming and hospitality-type development; there’s a wide variety of development going on out there.”
500 Tribes Casino
However, with the biggest, most expensive projects being casinos, other types of projects don’t get noticed as much.
“I don’t think those types get highlighted like the gaming effort,” Silentman-Kanuho says. “It’s across the board. The Diné College (in Tsaile on the Navajo Reservation) is getting a new library. (Northern Arizona University) is getting a new cultural center.”
Transportation projects are springing up as well, according to Silentman-Kanuho, many funded from ARRA. Those funds have allowed the tribes to finally begin projects that have been on the back burner for years, she says. Recovery.gov reports that at least $55M in Department of Interior grants have been awarded to Arizona tribes so far, not counting many other grant opportunities for tribes.
Convention space and entertainment venues are other directions tribes may be moving toward. The Pascua Yaqui Tribe’s $120M hotel expansion of Casino Del Sol near Tucson will include a 50,000 SF conference center. The 10-story hotel also has 215 rooms, three restaurants, a lobby lounge, pool, day club, spa and fitness center, a 1,120-space parking garage, and support facilities. In addition, the Casino Del Sol houses a 4,500-seat outdoor concert and entertainment venue.