U.S. Indian gaming has surpassed pre-Covid-19 levels and broken previous records to reach $48.4 billion in gross revenue in 2022, according to the 2022 Nationwide Impacts of Indian Gaming Report.
That’s a 10 percent increase over 2021.
That included $3 billion in revenue generated from 504 casinos operated by 246 tribes in 29 states, according to the report. The remainder of $5.3 billion comes from businesses associated with casinos, such as hotels and dining.
Ernest L. Stevens, Jr., chairman of the Indian Gaming Association, said the growth represents decisions the tribes made in reaction to the pandemic that increased trust in their operations.
The report notes that the industry provided more than 680,000 jobs in 2022, making it one of the top 20 employers in the nation. Of these, 264,963 worked directly for gaming, while 419,195 were ancillary to gaming, such as capital expansion and purchasing activity.
Gaming has led to gains in Native American communities, such as improved healthcare, schooling, public safety, housing and infrastructure. At the same time, almost three-quarters of the jobs generated by Indian gaming went non-native residents. That included $37 billion in direct and indirect wages, the report said.
Indian gaming has paid more than $140 billion in taxes to state and federal governments over the last ten years. Gaming operations, in turn, paid their tribal governments almost $21 billion in direct transfers.
Reportedly tribes donate more than $100 million in charitable contributions.
Stevens commented, “The economic impacts of Indian gaming are profound. Our industry continues to revitalize not only tribal communities nationwide but also our nearby, mostly rural neighboring communities. The Biden Administration recently summed up tribal gaming’s success and future endeavors when it declared that ‘the Indian gaming industry remains one of the most significant sources of tribal economic development in Indian Country.’ ”
