POJOAQUE SUIT AGAINST GOVERNOR THROWN OUT BY FEDERAL JUDGE
Last December, the Pojoaque Pueblo filed suit in federal court against Governor Martinez, saying the governor did not act in good faith and was trying to levy an “illegal” tax on the pueblo’s gambling revenues. Last week the US District Federal Judge, James Parker, dismissed the case, saying that the state had sovereign immunity protecting it from a lawsuit by the pueblo. Pojoaque now plans to take their case to the Department of the Interior to see if the feds will grant them a compact, granting them a compact without revenue sharing going to the state of New Mexico.
They also want the ability to serve liquor and beer on the gambling floor, which is not allowed on their previous compact. Gambling patrons tend to spend money much more freely when liquored up.
No tribe has successfully challenged revenue sharing in court, so it will be fascinating to watch the progress of this lawsuit. Their chances appear to be small to negligible, since federal law requires tribes to work out compacts with the states in order to have class III casino-style gambling. Their assertion that the state government has not acted in good faith in the negotiations, and that the tribe should get casinos by BIA decree looks flimsy, since all the other tribes and pueblos in the state have worked out similar compacts, which have been approved by Interior.
If Pojoaque wins, they will most certainly be followed by most other gambling tribes in the United States. That would certainly cause a battle between the states and the gambling tribes, probably resulting in efforts to close tribal casinos, or opening all venues in the state to slots and Class III gambling. Pojoaque may be opening the flood gates to a major backlash against gambling.
An article in the Albuquerque Journal on Friday covered this story.
