CASINO COMMUNICATIONS
Q &
A
E . Sequoyah Simermeyer
Chairman , National Indian Gaming Commission
When E . Sequoyah Simermeyer was appointed as chairman of the National Indian Gaming Commission ( NIGC ) in July 2019 , he had no way of knowing the historic highs and lows that Indian gaming would experience over the next three-plus years . Thankfully , now that the lows of the Covid pandemic have been replaced by record-setting highs , Simermeyer and the NIGC will look to shepherd the next evolution of this invaluable sector . He spoke with GGB Managing Editor Jess Marquez at the Indian Gaming Tradeshow & Convention in March .
GGB : I wanted to start with the updates to the consultation series that was initiated back in 2021 , as many of these efforts have come to conclusion in recent months . Could you give a summation of those efforts and the areas of policy that were affected ?
Simermeyer : We took a broad look at a number of different topics we thought would help improve flexibilities in our regulations , help us to be more responsive to trends we ’ re seeing , and more modern in some ways . Then we had a number of topics that we looked at that were more openended to help us to find more specific conversations in the future . But we reported that some of them resulted in policy changes , particularly with our strategic plan for the agency moving through 2026 . It also resulted in some improvements in our consultation policy with tribes , which we last looked at in 2013 . There are a number of these topics that resulted in rulemakings , particularly this fall , and we ’ re still going through that process .
You touched on key employees and primary management officials — I understand that ’ s a very big topic of discussion . Could you talk about that process and some of the considerations that went into it ?
These are our regulations at 25 CFR parts 502 , 556 , and 558 . These regulations we are looking at for a few different reasons , but one of the primary reasons is to be more compliant with the FBI standards for criminal history , record retention and management . Part of that is also an opportunity to help to provide more flexibility and more local-level decision-making about how their background and licensing programs are operated . So we ’ re looking at definitions of those individuals . We ’ re looking at trying to propose removing some of the thresholds for salary requirements for who is and isn ’ t background-eligible . From our perspective , we think it ’ s an opportunity to help modernize , but also to be compliant .
Cybersecurity has also been a big area of concern for the tribal sector . From a regulatory perspective , have there been any policy updates , and what is the commission ’ s stance on the issue as it is right now ?
During the pandemic , we saw an uptick in the sophistication of the types of ransomware attacks . These attacks on different tribal communities have had a really significant impact , from leadership to operations to the regulatory body within our regulations . A number of years ago , the commission moved toward a system where environmental , public health and safety standards were assessed and managed at the local level . The NIGC still plays a role in facilitating that and monitoring it , but it ’ s an opportunity to look at some of those security issues at the most local level . What we ’ ve been working hard with our technology division to do is to raise awareness about the issue . Like all other industries who ’ ve been dealing with this in recent years , we think there ’ s a lot of opportunity to promote best practices .
We ’ ve looked at our regulations to see if there is anything that would hinder adopting strong cybersecurity practices . We ’ ve held a number of training sessions to help tribes identify how they might set goals and standards for their communities . We ’ ve also implemented and continue to implement an IT vulnerability assessment program that provides technical assistance and training to help elevate the conversation and begin a base level of discussion within a regulatory body . One other thing we ’ ve done too is create a network with other subject matter experts in the federal family , from CISA to DHS to the Secret Service .
Tribal revenues from 2022 may surpass $ 40 billion , which would represent a new record . What do you attribute that success to , and from a regulatory perspective , what are some of the considerations that tribal operators should keep in mind with this level of growth ?
Well , it ’ s too early for us to say at this point , because our calculation is based on the end fiscal year , which changes for each tribe . So we anticipate knowing by mid-summer . I know we looked at this issue last year where there was a record high in the industry , $ 39 billion in gross gaming revenue . We saw that tribes , particularly during the pandemic , had worked hard to reinvest into their communities and to find sustainable goals that would help them to continue , as many tribes are now still continuing to move out of the pandemic . So it ’ s too early to tell at this point .
Indian gaming is moving into new markets , including internationally and even in some of the bigger commercial markets such as Las Vegas . What is unique about Indian gaming in a crowded market , and what does it bring to the table ?
We know that the current regulatory framework for Indian gaming is about to be 35 years old dating to the enactment of IGRA . So there ’ s a long history there of that regulatory system being developed . It ’ s unique in that there ’ s a multi-jurisdictional system of regulation . And so in many ways Indian gaming is a very heavily regulated industry . It ’ s also an industry that has very specific policy outcomes and goals for the community , as far as the use of revenues . I think those are perspectives as government enterprises that can go beyond Indian gaming and that history .
54 Global Gaming Business MAY 2023