Harrison County, Texas, recently passed a resolution supporting HR 759, which passed in the House of Representatives last July and is now awaiting action in the U.S. Senate. If it becomes law, it would clarify federal statutes to allow two tribes in Texas to offer Class II gaming.
The statutes it would clarify are contained in the 1987 Restoration Act and the 1988 Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.
The Lone Star State has three federally recognized tribes: the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas, located in Polk County; the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo in El Paso County; and the Kickapoo in Maverick County. Of those, only the Kickapoo offer Class II gaming.
HR 759 would clarify the law so the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe and the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo could legally offer gaming on their reservations, like hundreds of other federally-recognized tribes across the country.
The letter by Harrison County Judge Chad Sims calls the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe a “significant” employer through its Naskila Casino in Livingston, which faces closure under legal action by the state. The tribe has operated the casino since 2016. It has more than 400 employees and does business with hundreds of vendors. Sims letter asked the state of Texas to cease its efforts to close the casino.
About 60 letters from county judges, commissioners, mayors, city councils and chambers of commerce have also been sent supporting the tribe.
One letter points out that the tribe is the oldest Native American tribe in Texas: “The tribe has always been a good neighbor to the surrounding East Texas community, dating back to when Sam Houston asked them to help him in the fight for Texas independence,” it said.
