On April 19, the National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC) issued a notice of violation against the Apache Tribe of Oklahoma for multiple serious offenses dating back to 2013 concerning annual audits of gaming operations and the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.
The violations took place at the tribe’s Golden Eagle Casino in Apache and the now-closed Silver Buffalo Casino in Anadarko.
According to the NIGC statement, the tribe failed to comply in three areas: providing timely and compliant financial statements regarding operations at those two properties; not submitting financial statements within 120 days of the end of a property’s fiscal year; and failing to hire an independent certified public accountant to conduct an annual independent audit.
The tribe submitted an audit and financial statements for the Silver Buffalo Casino and Golden Eagle Casino‘s 2013 fiscal years but the CPA who conducted the audit was on probation and lost his license. The Apache tribe never submitted a new audit for either casino for fiscal year 2013. The tribe also failed to submit required documentation for 2017, 2018 and 2019.
In a press release, NIGC Chairman E. Sequoyah Simermeyer said, “NIGC’s technical assistance provided to the tribe over the past several years to correct these violations and to improve its internal controls and record keeping has not resulted in voluntary compliance. Submitting timely and accurate annual independent audit reports and agreed-upon procedures is critical to NIGC’s mission to protect the integrity of Indian gaming, and we do not take this enforcement action lightly.”
The NIGC could fine the tribe $57,527 per day for each day the reports and audits have not been submitted. However, the tribe has 15 days from the April 19 letter, or May 5, to respond. Simermeyer said he would “consider any information submitted in determining the facts surrounding the violations and the amount of the proposed civil fine, if any.”
