NATIONAL INDIAN GAMING COMMISSION (NIGC)

Statement of Regulatory Priorities

In 1988, Congress adopted the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) (Pub. L. 100-497, 102 Stat. 2475) with a primary purpose of providing "a statutory basis for the operation of gaming by Indian tribes as a means of promoting tribal economic development, self-sufficiency, and strong tribal governments." IGRA established the National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC or the Commission) to protect such gaming, amongst other things, as a means of generating tribal revenue.

At its core, Indian gaming is a function of sovereignty exercised by tribal governments. In addition, the Federal Government maintains a government-to-government relationship with the tribes--a responsibility of the NIGC. Thus, while the agency is committed to strong regulation of Indian gaming, the Commission is equally committed to strengthening government-to-government relations by engaging in meaningful consultation with tribes to fulfill IGRA's intent. The NIGC's vision is to adhere to principles of good government, including transparency to promote agency accountability and fiscal responsibility, to operate consistently to ensure fairness and clarity in the administration of IGRA, and to respect the responsibilities of each sovereign in order to fully promote tribal economic development, self-sufficiency, and strong tribal governments. The NIGC is fully committed to working with tribes to ensure the integrity of the industry by exercising its regulatory responsibilities through technical assistance, compliance, and enforcement activities.

Retrospective Review of Existing Regulations

As an independent regulatory agency, the NIGC has been performing a retrospective review of its existing regulations well before Executive Order 13579 was issued on July 11, 2011. The NIGC, however, recognizes the importance of Executive Order 13579 and its regulatory review is being conducted in the spirit of Executive Order 13579, to identify those regulations that may be outmoded, ineffective, insufficient, or excessively burdensome and to modify, streamline, expand, or repeal them in accordance with input from the public. In addition, as required by Executive Order 13175, the Commission has been conducting government-to-government consultations with tribes regarding each regulation's relevancy, consistency in application, and limitations or barriers to implementation, based on the tribes' experiences. The consultation process is also intended to result in the identification of areas for improvement and needed amendments, if any; new regulations; and the possible repeal of outdated regulations.

The following Regulatory Identifier Numbers (RINs) have been identified as associated with the review:

RIN

TITLE

3141-AA15

Tribal Background Investigations and Licensing

3141-AA27

Class II Minimum Internal Control Standards and Class II Minimum Technical Standards

3141-AA32

Definition of Sole Proprietary Interest

3141-AA44

Self Regulation of Class II Gaming

3141-AA47

Appeal Proceedings Before the Commission

3141-AA48

Facility License Notifications, Renewals, and Submissions

3141-AA49

Inspection and Access

3141-AA50

Enforcement Regulations

3141-AA53

Buy Indian Act Rule

3141-AA54

Management Contracts

3141-AA55

Class III Minimum Internal Control Standards

More specifically, the NIGC recently issued final rules in the following areas: (i) minimum internal control standards (MICS) and minimum technical standards for gaming equipment used in the play of Class II games, in order to respond to changing technologies in the industry and to ensure that the MICS and technical standards remain relevant and appropriate; (ii) appeals of the Chair's actions on ordinances, management contracts, notices of violations (NOV), civil fine assessments, and closure orders, in order to clarify the appeals process for the regulated community; (iii) facility licensing notifications, renewals, and submissions; (iv) monitoring and investigations; (v) enforcement, in order to provide for pre-enforcement procedures; and (vi) management contract regulations that reduce the scope of background investigations to be conducted on certain types of entities. The NIGC is also planning to issue final rules in the following areas: (i) tribal background investigations and licensing, in order to streamline the process for submitting information to the NIGC; and (ii) requirements for obtaining a self-regulation certification for Class II gaming.

Finally, the NIGC is currently considering promulgating new regulations in the following areas: (i) Definition of the term "sole proprietary interest" with regard to the conduct of gaming on Indian lands, in order to reduce uncertainty surrounding the types of development, consulting, financing, and lease agreements tribes may enter into with regard to their gaming activities; (ii) granting Indian preference to qualified Indian-owned businesses when purchasing goods or services needed to carry out the Commission's duties; and (iii) the removal, revision, or suspension of the existing minimum internal control standards (MICS) in part 542. The NIGC anticipates that the ongoing consultations with regulated tribes will continue to play an important role in the development of the NIGC's rulemaking efforts.