Oklahoma Indian Gaming Association (OIGA) is a non-partisan, politically neutral non-profit association, established in 1986. OIGA’s membership is made up of Indian Nations, with other non-voting associate members representing organizations, tribes and businesses engaged in tribal governmental gaming enterprises from around Oklahoma.
Over the last few days, numbers and figures related to Tribal Gaming have been featured in news stories and on social media. It is important to OIGA that the numbers used are correct.
Following are statistics, dollar amounts and other facts which are accurate. OIGA offers these for the sake of accuracy:
- Oklahoma Tribal Governments have paid the State of Oklahoma $1.2 Billion in exclusivity fees since 2005.
- The $7.2 Billion number is NOT the total Exclusivity Fees paid to the State of Oklahoma. This number is actually the total induced and indirect impact on the economic output of the State of Oklahoma, from annual operations and construction related to Tribal Gaming.
- When State Question 712 was passed, it was projected that Tribes would pay an estimated $70 million per year in exclusivity fees. Those projections were quickly surpassed. In 2017 alone, the amount paid in exclusivity fees was $133 million.
- Percentages paid by Tribal Nations in Exclusivity Fees to the State of Oklahoma are as follows:
- A fee ranging from 4 to 6 percent, based on adjusted gross revenue, for compact-covered machine games
- Ten percent of monthly net win of common pool on all non-housed bank card games
- Tribal Government gaming operations and related facilities supported 27,944 jobs as of our most recent Economic Impact Report in 2016. Of those jobs, 76.1 percent were full-time jobs and 66. 1 percent (or 18,470 jobs) were in rural Oklahoma communities. This number is the most recent available, and comes from OIGA’s 2016 Economic Impact Report.
- In 2015, Oklahoma Tribal Gaming operations and their employees paid out almost $325 million in payroll-related taxes, including $33 million in income taxes to the State of Oklahoma.
U.S. SNAPSHOT OF TRIBAL GOVERNMENTAL GAMING
- 566 federally-recognized Indian Tribes
- 240 Tribal Governments engaged in gaming (Class II or Class II)
- 490 Tribal Governmental gaming operations (several Tribes operate more than one facility)
- 28 states with Tribal Governmental gaming: (Class II or Class III)
- 249 Tribal-State gaming compacts
- 635,000 plus jobs created – 75% held by non-Indians (In areas of high unemployment, 80% of Tribal governmental gaming employees are Indian)
TRIBAL GOVERNMENT GAMING IN OKLAHOMA
- 38 federally-recognized Indian Tribes
- 31 Tribes have signed compacts
- 130 Tribal gaming operations – these range from an annex to a gas stop to full-scale resort casinos
TRIBAL USE OF NET REVENUES
- Revenues from Tribal Governmental gaming must be used in five specific areas as stipulated by the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2710 [Sec. 11].
- Net revenues from any tribal gaming are not to be used for purposes other than
- to fund Tribal Government operations or programs;
- to provide for the general welfare of the Indian tribe and its members
- to promote Tribal economic development
- to donate to charitable organizations
- to help fund operations of local government agencies
GENERAL INFORMATION
- All Indian people pay federal income tax.
- All Indian people pay FICA taxes.
- All Indian people pay social security taxes.
- All Indian people pay state income and property taxes, with the exception of those Indians who live and work on their own federally recognized reservations – not unlike soldiers and their families living on military installations.
For more information, visit OIGA.org.
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