The Fourth and Final "Off-Reservation" Casino?

Thread: Off-Reservation Gaming

The St. Regis Mohawk Tribe is one step closer to opening an "off-reservation" casino in the Catskills. The $600 million project will cover 30 acres next to the Monticello Gaming and Raceway, owned by Empire Resorts. The casino will include traditional and electronic slots as well as blackjack, roulette, and craps.

The Tribe is proceeding under IGRA's "best interests" exception for gaming on newly acquired lands, which requires the Interior Secretary to determine that the casino would be in the Tribe's best interests and would not be detrimental to the surrounding community. The state's governor must concur with the Secretary's determination. In April 2000, the Secretary made a positive determination, and the casino project passed environmental impact analysis this past week. The next step will be for Governor Pataki to concur, which, as a longtime supporter of a Catskills tribal casino, he is expected to do. The Tribe then will need to negotiate a tribal-state compact for casino-style games.

Prof. I. Nelson Rose predicts that with the current political controversy over "off-reservation" gaming, the St. Regis Mohawk casino may be the last one to pass through IGRA's "best interests" exception. With only four casinos in 18 years under this exception, and with the built-in veto power of the state governor, we have urged Congress to think twice before limiting or eliminating this exception. The political controversy is simply not supported by the facts, and the "best interests" exception may prove to be a useful tool for rural tribes in reaping the benefits of Indian gaming.