25-03-2025
United Auburn Indian Community files lawsuit over casino project
( —The United Auburn Indian Community announced they have filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of the Interior's approval of the Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians' casino project in Vallejo, California.
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In the lawsuit, UAIC claims the approval violates the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, the Indian Reorganization Act and the Administrative Procedure Act.
UAIC also states that the approval of the casino project was, 'rushed and politically motivated, occurring just days before the end of the Biden Administration.'
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The lawsuit also said the Department violated federal policy by not consulting with impacted tribal governments.
'The approval of this casino is a blatant violation of federal law and sets a dangerous precedent for tribes that have followed the established rules for Indian gaming,' said John L. Williams, Chairman of the United Auburn Indian Community. 'For decades, our tribe has worked to uphold the integrity of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act and prevent opportunistic gaming proposals that ignore history and harm responsible tribal governments.'
According to UAIC, the proposed casino would be a massive, 615,000-square-foot development in a high-traffic corridor, on a sensitive habitat at the intersection of Highway 80 and Highway 37, near the gateway to the San Francisco Bay Area. They said the location is far from the tribe's aboriginal homeland.
Some of their concerns include:
Encroachment upon the ancestral lands of other tribes
The environmental impact
Increased congestion
The protection of tribal cultural resources
The precedent of placing casinos in densely populated urban areas under questionable legal authority.
UAIC highlights the history of the Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians attempting to implement off-reservation casinos, claiming they attempted it in 1991, 2012 and 2019.
The Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians the U.S. Department of the Interior have not made a statement regarding the lawsuit.
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