Connecticut’s Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, owner of the Foxwoods Resort Casino, announced it will not appeal a ruling by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York that the town of Ledyard, Connecticut can collect property taxes on slot machines leased by the tribe.
At issue was around $20,000 in annual property tax on slot machines owned by two slot manufacturers but leased to the tribe. The tribe initially filed suit protesting the tax in 2003, on grounds of tribal sovereignty. A district court held for the tribe, but the federal appellate court overturned that decision last July, holding that a ruling favorable to the tribe would have led to lawsuits to bar the town from collecting property taxes from other non-Indian vendors who do business inside the casino, such as restaurant owners.
Attorney Benjamin Sharp, who represented the town, told the Associated Press that such lawsuits would have hurt the town severely. “The amount of dollars involved in a single year are probably not huge, but over many years, particularly if the principle used by the tribe applied to all property, it became a significant hit to the revenues of the town,” Sharp said.
The tribe is declining to appeal the case to the U.S. Supreme Court. Connecticut Attorney General George Jespen praised the tribe for “seeking an amicable resolution to the matter through discussions with the appropriate local government authorities,” according to the AP.
