Legal Interpretation of Sweepstakes’ Status Needed
Chris Cylke, the American Gaming Association’s SVP for government relations, says the industry needs to know where sweepstakes sit legally before it can determine a course of action or if it will need to fight against it. Sweepstakes are currently unregulated and untaxed in many U.S. jurisdictions.
Cylke joined Indian Gaming Association (IGA) conference chair Victor Rocha and IGA executive director Jason Giles Oct. 30 as part of Rocha’s five-part educational series on what sweepstakes are and how the regulated industry can fight their proliferation.
“If sweepstakes gaming were as clear cut as those involved with it are saying, we probably would be doing it,” Cylke said AGA members have told him. “But it’s not worth putting (their) gaming licenses at risk.”
Cylke called the status of sweepstakes “murky.” And Giles said it falls into the category of other currently or previously unregulated forms of gambling — including fantasy sports. In order to eradicate or at least regulate sweepstakes — or pick’em fantasy or skill games, for that matter — the industry must engage law enforcement. Or get state or federal legislators or regulators to tackle the issue.
Beyond how to fight, the trio agreed that it might unite and fight together.
“How do we collaborate? Rocha asked Cylke.
“We educate,” he said. “And we make a commitment to work together.”
Biden to Tribes: America is Sorry
President Joe Biden had a watershed moment in Indian Country last week, when he became the first American president to apologize to Native Americans for the 150-year-long practice of sending native children to boarding schools. The children were separated from their families and forced to assimilate at federally run schools.
“The federal government has never formally apologized for what happened,” Biden said during an event on the Gila River reservation in Arizona. “I formally apologize as President of the United States of America for what we did. It’s long overdue.”
Gila River is the biggest gaming tribe in Arizona. The tribe operates four casinos.
Ernie Stevens, chairman of the Indian Gaming Association, called Biden’s apology “courageous and heartfelt. … This apology is a commitment to righting the historical wrongs faced by Indigenous peoples and paves the way for meaningful dialogue and reconciliation.”
Oklahoma Governor Sues Legislators Over Compacts
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt has long had a fraught and contentious relationship with the state’s tribes. Oct. 28, he added another chapter to the dispute when he filed a lawsuit against House Speaker Charles McCall and Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Treat, reports Fox25.
In the lawsuit, Stitt asks a county district court to claim jurisdiction and declare a pair of bills invalid. The bills passed the legislature before Stitt vetoed them. The legislature then overrode Stitt’s veto. The bills extend tribal compacts related to tobacco and motor vehicles. Stitt claims that only he can negotiate with the tribes.
Among the issues that the tribes would like to negotiate is a pathway to legal sports betting and potentially iGaming. But tribal leaders across the state aren’t convinced that will happen during Stitt’s term.
“Our members remain united to move our industry, our communities and our state forward and will work with any partners who share that vision,” Matt Morgan, chair of the Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association said at Global Gaming Expo (G2E) last month.
