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When it comes to federal regulations on tribal gaming, those rules are not meant to be broken. Several parties involved in the management of Two Kings Casino near Kings Mountain, North Carolina could literally pay for breaking some of those rules soon.
Federal regulators announced on Wednesday that a contract to rearrange the casino’s operations was executed without prior acknowledgment/approval from the United States government. For that reason, the casino could face some serious consequences.
Two Kings Casino gets Notice of Violation
According to the release from the National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC), the violations involve the Catawba Indian Nation, Kings Mountain Sky Boat Partners, LLC and the owners of that corporation. An investigation by the NIGC says these parties were involved in what at the very least could be a costly administrative error.
“As set forth in the NOV, the investigation found the Nation allowed Sky Boat to manage in part the expansion of Catawba Two Kings Casino without an approved management contract. Additionally, the Nation and Sky Boat failed to submit a management contract within 60 days of its execution, as required by NIGC regulations.”
The implicated entities now face possible penalties of $57,527 per day that they were out of compliance and possible temporary closure of the casino. It’s unclear at this point exactly how much a fine could add up to. Additionally, the NIGC has made no announcements about when a possible closure could begin or how long it could last.
While the parties await their specific fates, the situation is a good primer on how compact gaming works in the USA.
Why is the casino’s management the federal government’s business?
The Catawba Nation offers gambling at Two Kings Casino via a gaming compact with the governments of both North Carolina and the United States. Thus, the federal government is essentially a party to a three-way contract governing gaming activity.
Changes in the management of casinos are significant because they could potentially represent illicit activity. That’s why the federal government maintains a standard that all such changes must be approved before taking effect. The feds need time to run background checks on individuals material to the deals.
At this point, that’s pretty standard procedure in all forms of gambling, not just tribal. It’s uncertain whether the Catawba Nation simply overlooked this obligation or whether there was something more nefarious happening. Either way, that failure is going to cost them dearly.
