Cayuga Nation strikes ahead in federal criticism towards state lottery machines

The Cayuga Nation gained a key authorized victory July 30 when a federal decide denied the New York State Gaming Commission’s renewed movement to dismiss its lawsuit alleging illegal Class III gaming on tribal land.

The decision, issued within the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York, confirms the court docket’s jurisdiction to listen to the Nation’s claims below the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. The court docket rejected the fee’s arguments that the Nation lacked recourse in federal court docket and that IGRA’s provisions barred equitable aid, discovering that the statute is “judicially administrable” and doesn’t preclude the court docket’s equitable jurisdiction.

In their 63-page renewed motion to dismiss, the state defendants argued that the court docket lacks subject-matter jurisdiction and that the Nation’s criticism fails to state a declare. They contended that IGRA supplies an unique administrative and compact-negotiation scheme, which Congress supposed to be the only treatment for disputes over Class III gaming. 

The movement asserted that IGRA doesn’t waive state sovereign immunity for injunctive or declaratory aid, and that tribes lack a non-public proper of motion to enjoin state-run lottery operations. The fee additionally maintained that New York’s lottery merchandising machines and draw-game terminals are expressly approved by state regulation and fall outdoors IGRA’s definition of “gaming.”

In its complaint, the Nation says the state operates lottery merchandising machines and “draw game” terminals for Powerall and Mega Millions on its federally acknowledged, 64,015-acre reservation with out the Nation’s consent or a federally authorized compact. Under IGRA, these actions qualify as Class III gaming and require each tribal consent and a compact ratified by the U.S. Department of the Interior.

“The Cayuga Nation has exercised its sovereign authority to regulate gaming on its Reservation under IGRA. New York State’s operation of Class III gaming on the Nation’s reservation is illegal and needs to be discontinued,” Clint Halftown, the Cayuga Nation’s federally acknowledged consultant, stated in a press release. “It unfairly competes with the Nation’s casinos and is a clear violation of federal and Nation law. This is about standing up for our rights and protecting the integrity of our laws, our businesses, and our community.”

With the movement to dismiss denied, the Cayuga Nation can now transfer ahead on its claims that New York State should stop Class III gaming on tribal lands or negotiate a legitimate compact. The Nation stated the ruling represents a step towards implementing IGRA’s necessities and affirming the Nation’s sovereign authority over gaming on its reservation.