Gov. Gavin Newsom is splitting with the federal government and Koi Nation to instead support smaller California tribes that oppose the latest proposed casino project. (Image: Jessica Christian / Associated Press)

The Office of California Governor Gavin Newsom sent a blistering letter to the US Department of the Interior last Friday, voicing his opposition to a casino in Windsor proposed by the Koi Nation.

Gov. Newsom joins a list of local and state politicians that sided with other local tribes in coming out against the proposal, as well as another by the Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians.

Note: California online casinos are not legal yet.

Tribes Looking to Take Advantage of ‘Restored Lands’ Exception

Both of those projects are attempting to build casino complexes on “restored lands” that are relatively far from the historical lands of those tribes. Under the restored lands exception, gambling can take place on land acquired by tribes that were restored to federal recognition after losing such recognition in the “Termination Era” of the 1950s and 1960s. 

The letter, written by Matthew Lee, California’s senior advisor for tribal negotiations, explained that the governor believes these proposals are too problematic for him to support.

“[Gov. Newsom] is concerned that these specific projects are proceeding in a manner that would sidestep the State, ignore the concerns of tribal governments and other local communities, and stretch the ‘restored lands’ exception beyond its legal limits – while failing to adequately consider whether there might be a better way,” Lee wrote to Bryan Newland, the Interior Department’s assistant secretary for Indian Affairs. 

Other local tribes have applauded Gov. Newson’s stance. The Lytton Rancheria of California released a statement saying that the governor’s letter “amplifies the widespread concerns voiced by tribal governments, elected officials, and local communities.”

“We thank Governor Gavin Newsom for voicing his concerns about the Shiloh Resort and Casino Project and the Scotts Valley Casino and Tribal Housing Project,” Lytton Rancheria Tribal Chairperson Andy Mejia said in a statement. “Both of these projects are opposed by the native peoples actually indigenous to these sites and supported by tribes from outside Solano and Sonoma Counties.”

Koi Nation: Governor Newsom Has ‘Fundamental Misunderstanding’ of Law

The tribes attempting to build these facilities disagree. Dino Beltran, vice chair of the Koi Nation, pointed out that a federal judge had already affirmed his tribe’s right to pursue a gaming facility under the restored lands provision in a 2019 decision.

“Despite our nation’s best efforts to educate stakeholders about our eligibility to seek gaming-eligible trust land under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act’s (IGRA) ‘restored lands’ exception, it is evident that the Governor’s opposition reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of federal law,” Beltran said in a statement to The Press Democrat. “IGRA’s restored lands exception was designed precisely to correct historic wrongs that rendered landless tribes like the Koi, depriving them of opportunities to develop and achieve economic self-sufficiency.”

However, Lee’s letter disputes that interpretation, saying that the restored lands exception only applies if a casino “would not be detrimental to the surrounding community,” provided a state’s governor agrees with that determination. Newsom has done that before, affirming the rights of the Tejon Indian Tribe to build a casino based on the “unique circumstances” that they were building on land that would have been a tribal reservation had the US government ratified a treaty in 1851.

The battle over these two casinos is far from over. The Bureau of Indian Affairs is accepting public comment on the Koi Nation casino’s environmental impact statement through August 26, while the environmental assessment period for the Pomo casino in Vallejo ends on Thursday. 

Note: To gamble online in California, stick to sports or check the list of social casinos.