<IGA Letterhead> June XX, 2022
E. Sequoyah Simermeyer, Chair National Indian Gaming Commission United States Department of the Interior
1849 C St., NW Mail Stop #1621 Washington, D.C. 20040
Re: Comments on NIGC’s proposed amendments to 25 C.F.R. Part 518
I. INTRODUCTION These comments are made in response to the notice of proposed rulemaking published by the NIGC in the Federal Register on April 7, 2022. This proposed rule was drafted after the NIGC held a series of consultations with tribal governments on proposed revisions to its regulations, including potential revisions to the regulations governing the self-regulation of Class II Gaming. The Indian Gaming Agency (“IGA”) therefore submits the following comments, which are included under headings of the subsections of 25 C.F.R. Part 518 below. These comments incorporate concerns raised in our November 1, 2021 letter, which was submitted during the Series B consultation period, and discussed via Zoom on September 21-22 and October 21, 2021. II. COMMENTS A. Certification and Review Process (25 C.F.R. § 518.7) “The Commission shall issue a final determination within 30 days after issuance of its preliminary findings if the tribe has informed the Commission in writing that the tribe does not request a hearing or within 30 days after the conclusion of a hearing, if one is held. The decision of the Commission to approve or deny a petition shall be a final agency action.” 1 We expressed our concerns during the NIGC’s Series B Consultation that the proposed revisions to this section did not sufficiently detail the standards to which a tribal government seeking self- regulated status is held and, further, did not adequately provide due process protections for those tribal governments who possess a certificate of self-regulation. We recommended that the new rules have, in sufficient detail, the standards tribal governments must satisfy to obtain and maintain a certificate of self-regulation, particularly when assessing the provided information against the terms of 25 C.F.R. § 518.3 (a)-(e). The IGA is still concerned that the full scope of what the NIGC
1 Self-Regulation of Class II Gaming, 87 Fed. Reg. 20351 (proposed Apr. 7, 2022) (to be codified at 25 C.F.R. pt. 518.7).
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