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www.tribalgovernmentgaming.com Association of Gaming Equipment Manufacturers EDUCATION BEYOND INDIAN GAMING COMPETING WITH COMMERCIAL EXTENDING CULTURE IN VEGAS TRIBAL Government Gaming Doing Diversity How to extend the economic impact of tribal gaming A GGB Publication What should you add to a tribal casino to continue to be competitive? TRIBAL CASINO DIRECTORY Tribal Mothers Why women have always played a huge role in the advancement of tribal gamingwww.tribalgovernmentgaming.com 3 Tribal Amenities Tribal casinos, just as their commercial counterparts, have been placing increasing emphasis on adding non-gaming amenities, from new food concepts to luxury hotel towers to spectacular pool projects. Some of the top architects serving Indian Country comment on what is making money away from the games. By Frank Legato Tribal Government Gaming 2024 21st Annual Edition CONTENTS A GGB Publication FEATURES 10The Washington Model Tribal gaming in the state of Washington, with its unique video lottery central system, continues to expand and thrive. By Alex Goldstein 14Diversifying Fortunes Many tribes that operate casinos are seeing new and lasting revenue streams in commercial ventures both inside and outside of the gaming industry. By Jess Marquez 18Tribal Motherland Women in leadership roles are more common in tribal gaming than in the commercial industry. Here are a few of the groundbreakers. By Marjorie Preston 28Challenge and Opportunity A look at how the tribal gaming industry developed to this point, and the challenges that lie ahead. By Bill Sokolic 74San Manuel’s Pride The success of the Palms, the first Las Vegas resort owned by a Native American tribe, points to the expertise of Cynthia Kiser Murphey and the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians. By Roger Gros COLUMNS 8 Education Onward and Upward Katherine Spilde 32Purchasing A Sophisticated Approach Carl Long DEPARTMENTS 4Editor’s Letter 6Casino Communications With E. Sequoyah Simermeyer, FormerChairman, National Indian Gaming Commission 40Tribal Government Gaming 2024 Directory 73Advertiser Index 37 Acres Manufacturing 40 BMM Innovation Group 46 Cuningham 48 Eclipse Gaming Systems 51 Everi 54 HBG Design 58 Imagine This 59 Kambi 62 Koin 63Konami Gaming 64 Marker Trax 66 Morse Watchmans 67Novomatic Americas 68 R2Architects 70 Rymax 71 Sbarro 72 TBE Architects CORPORATE PROFILES 22 COVER STORY On the cover: We-Ko-Pa Casino Resort, TBE Architects4 TRIBAL GOVERNMENT GAMING 2024 A s a proud Renoite, I frequently—per- haps too frequently—like to say that I am a child of the commercial land- based casino industry, having been in and around them for the entirety of my youth and adolescence. The idea of corporate enti- ties planning, building, opening and expand- ing casino resorts as a means to drive shareholder value and generate profits is fa- miliar to me, in the same way that I would imagine Idahoans are familiar with potato farms or Mainers and their lobster fisheries. By contrast, I had no experience whatso- ever with tribal gaming prior to joining GGB, and the last two years have served as an extremely fascinating and enjoyable crash course into an entirely distinct, invaluable and often underestimated sector that is con- tinuing to grow in size and scope. One lesson that has been particularly hard for someone like me to understand is that the pride and sincerity of tribal operators stems directly from their utilization of gam- ing not purely as a money-maker, but as a means to provide basic services and resources for their people that would otherwise not be available. This ideology will forever separate the two sides of the industry, because their re- spective outlooks will never match—one fac- tion thinks seven generations into the future whereas the other thinks about quarters and fiscal years. Having now migrated to South- ern California, I have had the pleasure of ob- serving this philosophy firsthand. Of the many themes that flow through- out Indian Country, one that is especially prevalent in this year’s edition of Tribal Gov- ernment Gaming is that of diversity, in many different aspects. The cover story, from Frank Legato, ex- plores the increasingly broad range of high- end amenities that operators are bringing to their properties; my own story highlights the plethora of gaming and non-gaming business ventures that tribes have now begun exploring in the name of economic diversification; and The Innovation Group explains how Washington state has emerged as a new tribal hotspot, distinct from others already cultivated in the West and Midwest. Additionally, Marjorie Preston touches on the diverse representation seen throughout the industry, and the importance of female leader- ship in key roles; and Bill Sokolic gives insight as to how smaller tribes are entering the business with new perspectives and innovations next to their larger, more established counterparts. Finally, Q&As with former NIGC Chairman E. Sequoyah Simermeyer and Palms General Manager Cynthia Kiser Murphey underscore new developments in tribal regulation and opera- tion, respectively; and columns from San Diego State University’s Dr. Kate Spilde and PMI’s Carl Long shed light on fresh avenues in educa- tion and purchasing. One of the touchstone mottos of the United States is “e pluribus unum,” or “out of many, one.” Conversely, the enactment of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act in 1988 gave rise to a new field—tribal gaming—that has since been adopted and interpreted by an expanding num- ber of sovereign nations, each of which brings its own unique voice to a conversation that spans from coast to coast. In this way, it could be said that tribal gaming is not in fact one industry, but many. To be sure, this is an exciting time for Indian gaming, an era that is increasingly defined by success and prosperity. From humble beginnings in bingo halls or in some cases nothing at all, tribes have built world-class resorts, expanded into new domestic and international markets and successfully defended their legal rights in several high-profile battles against commercial interests. We hope you enjoy our tribute to the sector that brings a necessary human presence to the gaming ecosystem, one that reminds us what cooperation and inclusion really embody. EDITOR’S LETTER Out of One, Many By Jess Marquez TRIBAL Government Gaming 2024 Roger Gros, Publisher | rgros@ggbmagazine.com X: @GlobalGamingBiz Jess Marquez, Editor jmarquez@ggbmagazine.com Frank Legato, Managing Editor |flegato@ggbmagazine.com X: @FranklySpeakn Monica Cooley, Art Director mcooley@ggbmagazine.com Terri Brady, Sales & Marketing Director tbrady@ggbmagazine.com Beck Kingman-Gros, Associate Publisher & COO bkingros@ggbmagazine.com Lisa Johnson, Communications Advisor lisa@lisajohnsoncommunications.com X: @LisaJohnsonPR Columnists Carl Long |Katherine Spilde Contributing Editors Alex Goldstein |Marjorie Preston|Bill Sokolic ______________ • • • • • • • • • • • • • Official Publication GGBCASINO & GAMING A SURE BET FOR YOUR VENUE INTERNATIONALLY CELEBRATED AS THE ORIGINAL XL NY PIZZA, OFFERING A FRESHLY MADE, HIGH-QUALITY MEAL FOR GAMING ENTHUSIASTS SEEKING AN ON-THE-GO SNACK OR MEAL.. 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Visit sbarro.com or Scan this QR Code - QSR Magazine June 2023* *Based on percentage unit growth during calendar year 2022 DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE NOW6 TRIBAL GOVERNMENT GAMING 2024 E. Sequoyah Simermeyer’s four- year tenure as chairman of the National Indian Gaming Com- mission (NIGC) was perhaps the most unique of any to hold the position thus far, given that it included both the dismal lows wrought by the Covid-19 pandemic and the record-setting resurgence that followed shortly after. Simer- meyer championed several NIGC initiatives over those four eventful years, including the advance- ment of self-regulation, cybersecurity, fiscal re- porting and more. He spoke with TGG Editor Jess Marquez at the ICE London tradeshow in February in what were some of the final days of his term. TGG: Now that the calendar has changed over to 2024, what is the com- mission most focused on for the rest of the year? What’s your main focus? Simermeyer: I think a lot of it is going to be implementation of initiatives that we have been focusing on throughout recent years, but defi- nitely helping to be a partner in the way the reg- ulatory community thinks about technology, but also the threats that exist involving cyberse- curity, and continue to try to help to promote good practices in that area. You spoke in London on a panel re- garding U.S. and European regula- tions. One concept that is very unique to tribal gaming is the concept of self- regulation. Could you expand on what that means from the commission’s perspective, especially at this point? For us, self-regulation represents an authority within the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) that allows for tribes to petition the commission for a certificate of self-regulation. That certificate reduces some of the oversight role that the NIGC has in that tribe’s opera- tions—things like site visits, demands for infor- mation without a subpoena—and it also provides some cost savings to the tribe... At the time of (IGRA’s) debate and passage, there was concern from tribal leaders about the role that other regulatory bodies, like the newly created NIGC at that time, would play when tribes had their own jurisdiction, authority and ability to regulate. And so this is one of the provisions that was in there, in part for that reason. This is a time of huge growth for the tribal sector, and as a regulatory authority, what would you say is important for operators to keep in mind during this time? With any kind of change within the industry, there’s always an opportunity for tribal legislators and lawmakers at the local level to assess what their policy objectives are through their regula- tory body. So if there are changes, new offerings within the IGRA framework, there’s an opportu- nity to assess your ordinance, an opportunity to establish goals you have with your licensing process that would help to meet your bigger mis- sion within IGRA. As you reflect on your tenure, what are some things that stick out in your mind from the journey? What are some things that you’ll look back on fondly from your time at the NIGC? From early on in the tenure, I’ve gained a strong appreciation for tribal government lead- ership, our own leaders and subject matter ex- perts at the NIGC for their ability to be creative and resilient in navigating solutions from the pandemic, and then also to keep moving and advancing new areas and to leverage what we learned in that area. I think the pandemic has been a significant moment for all of the industry, but in the regu- latory community, it gave us at the NIGC an opportunity to change how we effectively en- gage with and collaborate with tribes on solving problems... It’s also given us an opportunity to develop more resources in particular for the pandemic, but as other priority areas have come up, like cybersecurity or active shooters and critical event response, it’s given us an opportu- nity to establish more guidance that can pro- mote best practices in those areas. To finish things off, this is obviously the last ICE in London, so I’m curi- ous, what has been your favorite part about visiting London and what’s one thing you’ll miss before things move to Barcelona? What’s been exciting about the opportunities we’ve had to be here in London is that it’s an extremely international city. And the level of ac- tivity and collaboration around it is really ener- gizing. So I’ve very much enjoyed the time that I’ve been here for ICE. And it is absolutely an important part of understanding trends in the industry, so that’s always invigorating and excit- ing to see. CASINO COMMUNICATIONS E. Sequoya Simermeyer Vice President of Strategic Partnerships, Fanduel; Former Chairman, National Indian Gaming Commission Q & A with From early on in the tenure, I’ve gained a strong appreciation for tribal government leadership, our own leaders and subject matter experts at the NIGC for their ability to be creative and resilient in navigating solutions from the pandemic, and then also to keep moving and advancing new areas and to leverage what we learned in that area.8 TRIBAL GOVERNMENT GAMING 2024 A s part of their deep commitment to education, the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation was an early and generous investor in advanced educa- tion and research in tribal gaming. Nearly 20 years ago, the tribe endowed the Sycuan Institute on Tribal Gaming (SITG) at San Diego State University (SDSU) with three clear mandates: 1) to develop and offer the na- tion’s first four-year degree program in tribal casino operations management (a B.S. in hospi- tality and tourism management); 2) to produce and direct academic research on tribal govern- ment gaming; and, 3) to inform and elevate the public policy debate around tribal government gaming and nation building. With the support of our gaming industry partners, the Sycuan Institute is demonstrating a shared commitment to the long-term goal of de- veloping a professional class of tribal govern- ment gaming experts who enhance and lead the industry globally. Expanding Off-Campus To extend these mandates beyond the SDSU campus, the SITG offers fully online classes in tribal gaming for both its degree and Profes- sional Certificate. The certificate program con- sists of 12 units across five courses and can be completed in nine months through three path- ways: 1) the traditional B.S. in hospitality and tourism management on campus; 2) a stand- alone certificate through SDSU’s Global Cam- pus; or, 3) through the American Indian Studies (AIS) degree completion program fully online. The institute’s partnership with Red Lake Na- tion College (RLNC) is a pilot project demon- strating that our program can be exported across Indian Country. Expanding the Research Agenda The Covid-19 pandemic supported the Sycuan Institute’s early move to distance education. The shutdown of the $40 billion tribal gaming in- dustry also revealed new research topics. Over the last several years, the video gaming and esports ecosystem has seen large shifts in communications, technology, and access. Tribal youth maintained critical connections through playing games and tournaments online through the pandemic. Despite enduring barriers to participate and consume in rural areas, video gaming is becoming a significant aspect of tribal youth culture and worthy of academic research. The Sycuan Institute invested in the first-ever sur- vey of tribal youth video game/esports participa- tion by connecting SDSU Professor Brandon Mastromartino with Project Quipu (PQ) and the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES). This ongoing project aims to better under- stand the interests, habits and intentions sur- rounding video gaming and esports among tribal youth, with the results informing advances in ca- reer development, synergies with the casino gam- ing industry, and opportunities for community building and infrastructure expansion in Indian Country. This project also seeks to empower educators and communities to foster the next generation of industry leaders. As we educate and mentor a gen- eration of future leaders in the tribal government gaming industry, the Sycuan Institute continues to further our research and educational mission and enhance our community and industry partner- ships. Extending the Work Building on the new direction in esports and video gaming, as well as Professor Mastromartino’s ex- pertise in sports management, the Sycuan Institute is establishing itself as the leader in education and research on sports wagering in California. The public policy debate surrounding legalization and regulation of sports wagering in California presents a pivotal moment for stakeholders and the public at large, heralding significant economic, social and ethical implications. For a state with a rich sporting culture and a large, diverse population, potential le- galization of sports betting in California re- quires robust research and debate. The Sycuan Institute is strategically positioned to pioneer sports wagering education and research and is poised to support a proposed Institute for Sport Experiences at SDSU in the near future. Such an institute would prepare students for careers in the sports industry through experi- ential learning and industry networking while also pursuing a robust research agenda and providing executive education. Recognizing that Indian Country is an ever-changing landscape, aligning with Profes- sor Mastromartino’s work on sports consumer behavior to create a new sports program at SDSU ensures that that Sycuan Institute’s work remains relevant and impactful. Focused on topics such as consumer in- sights, the economic impact of sports betting on communities, and responsible gaming practices, future SDSU projects will con- tribute to the body of knowledge in the field and inform best practices for the growing sports betting industry. Ultimately, the Sycuan Institute will partner with industry and aca- demic leaders and the new Institute for Sport Experiences to develop relevant curriculum and executive training in areas such as sports- book operations, responsible sports wagering marketing, and cultural issues surrounding sports betting. As we explore new frontiers of research, including the pivotal questions surrounding sports betting, the Sycuan Institute looks to industry and academic leaders for partnerships to drive innovation in education and research. —San Diego State University Professor/Endowed Chair Katherine Spilde can be reached at kspilde@sdsu.edu, and SDSU Assistant Professor Brandon Mastromartino at bmastromartino@sdsu.edu. EDUCATION Onward And Upward Extending the work of the Sycuan Institute on Tribal Gaming beyond geography and gaming By Katherine SpildeYOUR CASINO Get More Players, Increase Loyalty, and Maximize Profits with Acres Smart Gambling Solutions FEATURING Upgrade Your Ticketing Experience Transform the ticketing experience by issuing data-driven bonus tickets from a slot machine’s ticket printer that can be redeemed for cash, free play, merchandise, and more. Maximize Your Profits on Video Poker Advanced analytics from Foundation evaluate every decision made in video poker to allow casinos to optimize marketing and operations. Casino Loyalty Technology Foundation HQ is a full CMS and Loyalty system that can dramatically grow new enrollments by removing sign-up friction and deploying a ten second enrollment process. 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