Kewadin Casinos Back Online Following Cyberattack
Michigan’s Sault Ste. Marie Tribe was hit with a debilitating cyberattack Feb. 9, which caused all five of its Kewadin Casinos to close. The tribe confirmed to the Detroit Free Press Feb. 25 that the casinos will be reopened successively over the following week.
Chairman Austin Lowes said in a statement that his tribe “”worked with outside cybersecurity experts around the clock to make the necessary steps to strengthen and enhance” its IT and security systems. The hackers were said to have stolen personal information and demanded ransom payments.
When the casinos were still closed, the supposed hackers sent a letter to a tribal news outlet alleging that leadership had ignored their demands. In that letter, the hackers threatened to sell the information if the ransom was not paid by Feb. 19.
Key Date in Colorado Ute Tribes’ Lawsuit Approaching
Colorado’s Ute tribes must respond to a motion to dismiss their wagering lawsuit against the state by March 7. How the court rules on the motion will determine whether the tribes’ claim that the state has cut them out of digital sports betting will move forward. If it does, the ultimate decision could be a game changer for tribes around the U.S.
Per the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA), the tribes have the right to offer in-person sports betting on their reservations. In Colorado, both tribes offer wagering at retail casinos. And for several years, at least one of the tribes offered statewide mobile wagering. But the state in 2023 declined to let the Southern Ute tribe relaunch its platform, saying the tribe must pay the state tax to take bets outside of Indian Country.
Days after the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear West Flagler vs. Haaland, the Southern Ute tribe filed suit against the state. The Ute Mountain Utes joined the lawsuit last fall. The West Flagler case, decided in the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, made it legal for the Florida Seminoles to offer statewide mobile betting.
As the Colorado case unfolds, tribes around the country will be watching, and one tribal attorney said that if the court finds in the Ute tribes’ favor, the decision could be more far-reaching than the West Flagler decision.
The difference between the Seminoles’ and Ute tribes’ compacts is in the details. There is specific language in the Seminoles’ 2021 compact that essentially deems a bet taken anywhere in the state is considered to have been placed in Indian Country if it flows through a server on tribal land.
“The Colorado compacts do not have that potentially magic language that deems” that a bet is considered placed where received, the lawyer said. “Whether or not you need that language is not clear and this lawsuit may” clarify that.
If the court decides that the language is not needed in compacts, it could clear the way for tribes in other states to have an easier path toward offering online sports betting – and eventually iGaming.
CA Tribes File Suit Over Koi Casino Approval
A group of California gaming tribes—the Lytton Rancheria of California, the Dry Creek Rancheria Band of Pomo Indians and the Cloverdale Rancheria of Pomo Indians—Feb. 24 filed suit against the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) and the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) over the approval of the Koi Nation casino project in northern California. The suit was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.
According to a press release, the agencies “violated federal law by fast-tracking the Koi Nation’s land-into-trust application and gaming approval without proper tribal consultation, adequate environmental review, or adherence to the established legal requirements.” In all, the suit aims to overturn the approval, “remove the Koi Nation’s land from federal trust, and require the federal government to conduct a proper review process that includes meaningful tribal consultation and environmental assessments.”
The Koi approval was one of several that came in the last days of former President Joe Biden’s administration, and has been controversial because it is considered an off-reservation project. Those approvals have been nearly impossible to obtain in previous years, and tribes with existing gaming operations have pushed back on setting what they consider to be a dangerous precedent.
“This approval is nothing short of a political maneuver that disregards the rights of Sonoma County’s historic tribes,” Lytton Rancheria Chairperson Andy Mejia said in a statement. “It undermines tribal self-determination, disrespects the cultural heritage of our people, and sets a dangerous precedent that would allow any tribe to claim land far outside its ancestral territory to open a casino.”
Stitt: Oklahoma Deserves ‘Fair Deal for Everyone’ for Betting
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt isn’t backing down from the legal sports betting proposal he floated in 2024. The deal would allow tribes the exclusive right to in-person betting, but would allow commercial entities to offer digital betting. The proposal flies in the face of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) and a 2024 interpretation of Indian gaming rules.
But Stitt tweeted Feb. 24: “If the Legislature is going to pass sports betting in Oklahoma, it needs to be a fair deal for everyone— not just the tribes.
“I rolled out a solid, fair plan over a year ago.”
Oklahoma’s tribes have not publicly responded, but have previously had a contentious relationship with Stitt. Under IGRA, federally recognized tribes have the right to exclusivity for Class III gaming and a right to maintain their sovereignty. Stitt’s proposal violates both issues. The state’s 30+ tribes have long said that they will wait until Stitt term-limits out in 2027 to seriously address the issue.
The state legislature is currently considering multiple legal sports betting bills, including one that would allow the tribes to offer retail sports betting, but give the Oklahoma City Thunder the rights to digital wagering. SB 585 would limit the number of mobile platforms in the state to one, and would require that all gross gaming revenue from the Thunder’s platform be “shared with all tribal entities that have entered into Model Gaming Compact.”
SB 585 was reported out of committee to the Senate floor Feb. 19, but the full Senate has not yet entertained the bill. Other sports betting bills in Oklahoma City have not gotten out of committee.
Regional Chamber Honors Mohegan Executive
The Chamber of Commerce of Eastern Connecticut has named Jeffrey (Jeff) Hamilton, president and manager of Mohegan Sun, as its 74th Annual Citizen of the Year.
Hamilton, a member of the Mohegan Tribe, has over two decades of experience at Mohegan Sun. Prior to his current position, he worked as the assistant general manager and in key management roles within the advertising and human resources departments. As president and GM, Hamilton is responsible for achieving overall business objectives, driving strategic planning, and ensuring operational success.
Citizen of the Year is an annual award given to an extraordinary individual for their outstanding contributions to the civic and business communities of the region. Hamilton was chosen not only for his longstanding leadership at Mohegan, but for also serving on the Board of Directors for the United Way of Southeastern Connecticut, where he was awarded the Chairman’s Award of Excellence for increasing Mohegan Sun employees’ participation by 23 percent in the 2019-20 United Way Campaign efforts.
