Doubling Down on Indian Gaming: Examining New Issues and Opportunities for Success in the Next 30 Years

The tribal gaming industry has changed significantly since President Reagan signed the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act into law. The National Indian Gaming Commission recently announced that tribal gaming brought in $31.2 billion in gross gaming revenue for 2016, the largest amount in the history of Indian gaming. As Chairman Forsman of the Suquamish Tribe will testify, the revenue flowing from gaming activities not only creates jobs and stimulates tribal economy, but also goes a long way to supplement the massive shortfalls left by the Federal Government's failure to appropriate adequate funding to meet Indian Country's needs. Unlike commercial casinos that generate revenue for shareholders, gaming revenue provides essential government services for tribal citizens, services like housing, health care, education, public safety and general social services. The benefits of Indian gaming also go beyond reservation boundaries. According to the National Indian Gaming Association, tribal gaming has created nearly 700,000 jobs and generated more than $10 billion in revenue for Federal, State and local governments in 2015 alone. While the benefits of gaming revenue to tribal governments are significant and have been the key to revitalizing some tribal economies, it is not the panacea for all. There is still much work to be done to truly achieve tribal self determination and sufficiency.