Indian Gaming Association Updates California Tribes on Team Building and Prediction Market Advocacy

The Indian Gaming Association (IGA) Chairman David Z. Bean and leadership met last week with California tribal leaders to discuss organizational priorities, legislative advocacy, and legal efforts tied to tribal sovereignty and Indian gaming.

The sessions began with the Yuhaaviatam of San Manuel Nation Council, where Bean thanked Chairwoman Lynn Valbuena and the Tribal Council for their partnership. He was joined by IGA Executive Director Jason Giles and Reid Milanovich, the former Chairman of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, who recently joined IGA as a consultant on legislative and regulatory affairs focused on Congress and federal policymakers.

On Thursday, Aug. 20, IGA leaders attended the California Nations Indian Gaming Association member tribal meeting at Viejas Casino & Resort in Alpine. Bean stressed the value of direct engagement.

Strengthening the IGA Team for 2027 and Beyond

Discussions centered on building IGA capacity. The association is adding PaaWee Rivera, a former White House tribal affairs official and citizen of the Pueblo of Pojoaque, to support growth in tribal membership—currently at approximately 120 tribes—and greater participation in the annual tradeshow. IGA also plans to expand its Washington, D.C. headquarters staffing with administrative and legislative affairs roles ahead of the new Congress in 2027.

Bean outlined the forward focus. “Our responsibility is not simply to respond to the issue in front of us today. We have to build an organization that is prepared for what is next, whether that is prediction markets, artificial intelligence, energy policy, new economic opportunities or another challenge that impacts tribal gaming and tribal sovereignty. That requires a strong team working together with a clear purpose.” IGA is also weighing expansion of its tradeshow to cover additional Native-owned businesses and tribal economic sectors such as agriculture, food sovereignty, and energy.

Prediction Market Advocacy and Related Legal Efforts

IGA provided updates on federal advocacy concerning prediction markets that offer sports wagering and casino-style gambling. The association has joined congressional roundtables before the House Agriculture Committee and Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. It is coordinating with tribal leaders on legislation that would bar sports betting and casino games from prediction market platforms, through the ongoing IGA-NCAI Task Force.

“This issue started with Indian Country warning that prediction markets were crossing directly into regulated gaming,” Bean said. “Today, more members of Congress are asking the same questions and recognizing that sports betting and casino gambling cannot simply be relabeled to avoid the laws that protect tribal, state, and regulated gaming.”

On the legal side, IGA and the National Congress of American Indians are preparing tribal amicus briefs in federal cases, working with attorney Michael Hoenig and the Native American Rights Fund’s Supreme Court Project in support of New Jersey’s petition to the U.S. Supreme Court. State courts in New York, Connecticut, and Nevada have ruled on claims that such wagers constitute federally regulated “swaps” under Commodity Futures Trading Commission jurisdiction.

“These legal cases are extremely important because they go directly to whether federal commodities law can be used to bypass tribal-state compacts, the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, and the established framework governing gaming in this country,” Bean said. According to Indian Gaming, the outreach reflects IGA’s commitment to unified communication with member tribes ahead of the fall legislative session.

Reporting: Indian Gaming

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