The Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians, Karuk Tribe and Tolowa Dee-ni鈥� Nation filed a lawsuit against the Department of the Interior and Biden administration officials on Dec. 23 to halt approval of the Coquille Indian Tribe's proposed casino in Medford.
The complaint alleges a favorable Final Environmental Impact Study for the project, released last month, is unconstitutional because it relies on invalid federal regulations specified by the Council on Environmental Quality. Court documents claim the CEQ lacks statutory authority to issue rules for other agencies.
The lawsuit also alleges Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, named as a defendant, didn鈥檛 properly consult with tribes opposed to the casino.
鈥淐ow Creek has since attempted multiple times to consult with the Secretary herself and with the Interior as directed by the White House and has gotten nowhere,鈥� said attorney Gabe Galanda. 鈥淲e鈥檙e suing to pause the process to allow that consultation as promised to occur.鈥�
Tribal opponents to the Medford casino, which would be located around 150 miles from the Coquille鈥檚 reservation near Coos Bay, say it will siphon customers from their own gaming businesses around the region.
The Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians operates a casino in Canyonville, Oregon, while the Yurok Tribe and Tolowa Dee-ni鈥� Nation own gaming facilities in Northern California.
鈥淭his is all about competition. So it's another move by Cow Creek not to have to compete in the market,鈥� said Judy Farm, CEO of the Coquille Tribe鈥檚 economic development arm Tribal One. 鈥淭hey've had over 12 years to comment and they have taken full advantage of the 12 years of time it's taken us to permit this project.鈥�
The Coquille Indian Tribe is waiting on final DOI approval to place their Medford property in federal trust so that it may be used for gaming. A public comment period for the proposed casino ended this week despite Oregon Governor Tina Kotek requesting an extension from the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
