Obama nominates Tulalip woman for NIGC chairman post

Thursday, April 29, 2010  

President Barack Obama finally nominated someone to serve as chair of the National Indian Gaming Commission.

Obama nominated Tracie Stevens, a member of the Tulalip Tribes, to the post. If confirmed by the Senate, she will be the first woman to oversee the regulation of the $28 billion Indian gaming industry.

Stevens currently works at the Bureau of Indian Affairs for Assistant Secretary Larry Echo Hawk. She has served as an adviser in Washington, D.C., since July 2009.

Prior to that, Stevens was a senior policy analyst for her tribe's governmental affairs office. She is known in Indian Country primarily for her expertise in Indian gaming -- she has served as Chair of the Gaming Subcommittee for the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians, Secretary of the Board of the Directors for the Washington Indian Gaming Association and as as the Northwest Delegate for the National Indian Gaming Association.

The NIGC recently swore in Daniel Little, a former employee of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation of Connecticut, as an associate commissioner. Steffani Cochran, a member of the Chickasaw Nation, was sworn in earlier this year as vice chair.

George Skibine, a member of the Osage Nation of Oklahoma, has been serving as acting chair of the NIGC since October. He is due to return to his career position at the BIA once Stevens takes over.

White House Announcement:
President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts (White House 4/28)

Related Stories:
NIGC complete for now with Daniel Little as last member (4/21)
NIGC nominee denies online posts that criticized Obama (4/16)
Blog: NIGC nominee may have bashed Obama on Internet (4/6)
Comment period for NIGC appointment closes March 29 (3/10)
EchoHawk names three members of DC team (7/31)
EchoHawk bringing in his team to Washington (7/20)