The 600-member Miccosukee Tribe of West Miami-Dade County in Florida recently held a special election and returned Billy Cypress to the position of chairman. Cypress, who had led the tribe for almost two decades, defeated interim chairman Roy Cypress Jr. The election was called after Chairman Colley Billie was ousted by the tribal council in November.
Billie, who had two years left in his second term as chairman, attempted to settle the tribe’s ongoing dispute with the IRS over a tax bill exceeding $1 billion. The impeachment petition accused Billie of withholding taxes from casino gambling distributions to tribal members, totaling $82 million, which the IRS demanded in legal action. The petition also noted the tribe lost hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue at its casino operation with bingo-style slot machines and poker Billie had installed at Miccosukee Resort & Gaming in Miami.
During the election campaign, Cypress took a tough stand against the IRS’ position on the tribe’s income from casino profits. Cypress himself is battling an IRS lawsuit over millions of dollars in unreported income. In addition, he faces lawsuits accusing him of stealing $26 million from Miccosukee bank accounts, including casino profits.
Unlike other U.S. tribes with casino operations, the Miccosukee Tribe never submitted a revenue allocation plan with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, outlining how funds will be spent on general services and income distributions to members. As a result, the Miccosukee tribe’s annual gaming income distributions of $120,000 to $160,000 per member have become a huge tax liability, dating back more than a decade. State court documents show the IRS estimates Miccosukee tribal members owe personal income taxes of more than $280 million plus $160 million in penalties and interest. The IRS also estimates the tribe itself owes more than $262 million in unpaid withholding taxes plus $441 million in penalties and interest.
