NIGA BRINGS ORGANIZATIONAL AND INDUSTRY LEADERS TOGETHER TO DISCUSS COMMON ISSUES AT INDIAN GAMING 2017
The Leadership panel, L-R moderated by Victor Rocha the Owner & Editor of Pechanga.net, Jonadev Chaudhuri, Chairman of the NIGC, Brian Cladoosby, President of NCAI, Geoff Freeman, President & CEO of the AGA and Ernie Stevens, Jr., Chairman of NIGA.
The National Indian Gaming Association (NIGA) Conference Track had a powerful keynote panel that brought together organizational and industry leaders for the first time. NIGA, the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI), the National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC) and the American Gaming Association (AGA) on the stage to discuss critical tribal and gaming issues and how tribes and organizations can move together with the new leadership in Washington, D.C. Topics discussed included the Affordable Care Act, sports betting, internet gaming, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and building awareness around Human Trafficking with Casino’s being safe havens for victims. The panel, moderated by Victor Rocha the Owner & Editor of Pechanga.net included, Ernie Stevens, Jr., Chairman of NIGA, Brian Cladoosby, President of NCAI, Jonadev Chaudhuri, Chairman of the NIGC and Geoff Freeman, President & CEO of the AGA. The common theme of the panel was relationship building and collaboration. NCAI President Brian Cladoosby said, “Going through life is about relationships. The Leaders of NIGA and AGA said, ‘Let’s do something different. Let’s do something together. When we stop looking beyond competition, and we look at cooperation, communication and working together, that’s when we’ll start seeing growth.” AGA President & CEO Geoff Freeman said, “We [NIGA and AGA] are focusing on moving forward and not looking at the past. I’m focusing on how together we can get issues resolved, such as getting sports betting legalized in this country. We must grow our industry and help it thrive in the years ahead Freeman further remarked, “How do we engage in trial and error that makes our industry more attractive to that next
generation of customer, that we are going to be depending on? That is what we are focused on at the AGA, that’s where the opportunity is, and that is where I am excited to work with each of you in this room.” Chairman Stevens echoed Freeman but also indicated that it is important to remember where we came from. He said, “Geoff has been a quick learner of our segment of the industry as an educated man. He’s been willing to learn and the collaboration has been phenomenal, not without bumps in the road, but the process of collaboration far out reaches the challenges we may have had working relationship with the AGA is critical. It works for us to stand together on issues of mutual concern.” Jonadev Chaudhuri, Chairman of the NIGC, said, “We have to have an eye towards the future. I appreciate the work NIGA does and the collaboration that NIGA has established with the AGA to address challenges on the horizon. Our job of regulation is important. Staying abreast of technological and statutory requirements will ensure the continued integrity of the industry.” Other discussions included gaming and legislative topics such as the Internal Revenue Service reporting process, (FINCEN regulations) to which Freeman said, “We all know the fastest way to failure from a policy-making standpoint is when you have mixed messages, and we’ve learned that on a host of different issues. When tribal gaming and commercial gaming are aligned on something, that’s the fastest way to success, and we were steadfastly aligned on the issue. We also need to move together to the slot tax threshold.” The topic then shifted to the new leadership in Washington, D.C. and the new presidential administration, including the Affordable Care Act. President Cladoosby said, “For years we
6 | INDIAN GAMING UPDATE - TRADESHOW EDITION 2017
Made with FlippingBook Online document