New York

Opinion: Uncertainty for Oneida Nation's casino

Monday, February 25, 2008

"Turning Stone Casino in Oneida County is sidling toward legitimacy if a recommendation announced Friday by the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs holds up.

Not that anyone seriously thought the wildly successful

Actually, two court decisions, the other from our state's highest court, the Court of Appeals.

The Supreme Court had ruled the casino in the town of Verona is not on sovereign Indian land, which by law it must be for federal gaming purposes. The Court of Appeals had ruled a required gaming compact between the state and tribe was invalid because the Legislature had never approved it.

For a couple years now, Turning Stone has continued to operate despite these twin court decisions that would have shut down any other enterprise. The casino's sole justification for staying open has been a letter from the U.S. Department of the Interior stating that as far as the feds are concerned, the gaming compact remains valid regardless of what mere courts find. No opponent, including the state, has taken the considerable trouble to challenge this federal view.

So the games go on. Jobs are preserved, the Oneidas rake in the bucks."

Get the Story:
Fred LeBrun: End run by feds likely to end Turning Stone uncertainty (The Albany Times-Union 2/24)

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