Over the past several weeks, Last Real Indians has published a deep dive series of articles focused on the gaming dispute between New York State (NYS) and the Seneca Nation of Indians (SNI). Let’s recap: In this ongoing series, we have produced documents that were previously unreported by any other news source; including: New draft regulations on tribal gaming from the Department of the Interior (issued just one day after SNI paid the state $564 million); the contract between SNI and former Delaware North lobbyist Bolton-St. Johns (BSJ) granting power to lobby the negotiation for a new gaming compact; and the fact that SNI signed a contract with BSJ while BSJ was still contracted with Delaware North (a major conflict of interest).

We have exposed a previously undiscussed angle on the link between the Seneca payment and construction of the new Buffalo Bills football stadium: New York State Governor Kathy Hochul has committed $418 million of the Seneca payment towards the new stadium in her hometown. The Buffalo Bills is owned by oil and gas billionaire Terry Pegula. Recently, Seneca led opposition resulted in Pegula’s company, JKLM Energy, scrapping their plans for fracking the Allegany River.

Now it’s time to introduce a major aspect of this story that no other news outlet is discussing: The origin of the Seneca gaming compact as it relates to a major land claim.

In 1990, Congress passed the Seneca Settlement Act. Former Congressman John LaFalce, who co-sponsored the Act, says “The purpose of the Act was to settle claims of the Seneca Nation arising from leases in Salamanca, Carrollton, Great Valley and Vandalia, all of which are located on the Allegheny Reservation.”

In 1993, the Seneca Nation of Indians brought a lawsuit against New York State, claiming title to the islands of the Niagara River. This case continued until June of 2002, when Judge Richard Arcara ruled in favor of New York State. Just two months later, August of 2002, the Seneca Nation of Indians and New York State signed the original gaming compact. The cover page of the 793 page compact is dated “April 12, 2002”; meaning that this agreement was being drafted while the Niagara Islands land claim was still active.

The nine year long land claim ended in June of 2002, yet somehow prior to April of 2002 both Seneca Nation of Indians leadership and New York State politicians knew that the trial was coming to an end. Former Congressman John LaFalce pleaded with then Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton, saying that she should deny the Seneca application for gaming; on the basis that it was a means by which to evade review under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. (Section 20(b)(1)(B)(i) of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act allows gambling without approval of Section 20 if the land is acquired as a part of a settlement of a land claim).

Referring to the 1990 Settlement Act, LaFalce writes, “It is therefore ludicrous to even suggest that casino gambling was ‘part of’ any settlement. How could it be? For at that time, an overwhelming majority of the Senecas opposed gambling. To be sure, a certain number, in my judgment, did see an opportunity for gambling, because while the 1988 Indian Gaming Regulatory Act does prohibit casino gambling off reservation, it does permit certain narrow exceptions, i.e., if land is placed into trust as part of the settlement of a land claim. So, this group did bring a lawsuit in 1993 claiming title to all the land on Grand Island and a significant portion of the land in the City of Niagara Falls, hoping for a settlement permitting gambling. This was their ‘first bite’ at the apple of their eye—casino gambling.”

The author of this article has often pondered, when former Congressman John LaFalce wrote “this group did bring a lawsuit in 1993,” to whom was he referring? He references “a certain number” of Senecas who saw an opportunity for gambling. What were their names? Who are these individuals and their known affiliates? What is their involvement in the seemingly “resolved” dispute as it stands today? These are all questions which require serious investigation.

LaFalce is not the only one to speak publicly about the connection between the land claim and the gaming compact. An article in the Buffalo News dated August 19th, 1999 has the headline “CASINO APPROVAL BEING LINKED TO SENECAS DROPPING GRAND ISLAND LAND CLAIM.” This article came out three years before the trial ended and the gaming compact was signed. So that timestamp tells us that this connection was well known at least three years prior. An excerpt from the aforementioned Buffalo News article reads: “The state's interest in linking the Grand Island land claim to gaming negotiations was revealed in a letter [former SNI President] Ray wrote to [former NYS Governor] Pataki last week. ‘I met with Mr. John O'Mara (Pataki's lead negotiator for the gaming compact) Aug. 11 to begin discussions regarding a gaming compact…’ Ray wrote. ‘Mr. O'Mara has taken the position that until and unless a settlement is reached regarding the land claims of the Seneca Nation, which are being litigated, that you will not agree and approve a gaming compact.’”

As if by magic, just three years later, the land claim was settled and the gaming compact was immediately signed.

Also, the New York Legal Research Guide, page 582, states “In 1996, the state appeared to link negotiations on land claims to casino gambling…” So now our timestamp of acknowledgement moves back from 1999 to 1996, just three years after the land claim suit was filed.

According to former Congressman John LaFalce and many other sources who were involved in this entire ordeal, the entire land claim case was nothing more than a means by which the original gaming compact was obtained. Ergo; the gaming compact was a settlement for the land claim. Yet, as shocking as this revelation may be, it still doesn’t tell the entire story. Judge Arcara ruled against the Senecas, yet somehow the land claim was a powerful enough argument that it was resolved via settlement in the form of the gaming compact. If the land claim was baseless, then why would New York State settle at all?

Why was New York State inclined to sign the gaming compact and settle the lawsuit if in fact the Seneca Nation of Indians did not have a legitimate argument for title of the islands? Last Real Indians knows the answer, and we will lay it all out in the coming weeks with rock solid evidence included.

Who wanted the gaming compact so badly that they went to great lengths and lobbied all levels of state and federal government to make it happen? Surely, the Seneca Nation of Indians could not have accomplished this without help from someone else…

Delaware North Gaming & Entertainment FOIL Request from 9/12/2013

Certainly there are others who also know the answers to all of our questions. Take, for instance, the image above. The original 2002 gaming compact gave SNI exclusive gaming rights within a specified territory. This exclusivity was violated by New York State and Delaware North, and this violation resulted in the 2013 settlement which was at the center of the dispute that lasted from 2017 until last month.

Interestingly, the settlement was agreed upon in June of 2013. Three months later, in September of 2013, Delaware North manager Terry Burton filed a Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request, seeking “a copy of the following categories of documents within your possession or under your control:

All studies, reports and analyses prepared or received by the Governor’s Office during the period from January 1, 2009 to the present [September 12, 2013] relating to the Seneca Nation’s planned or proposed exercise of any rights granted to it under the Seneca Nation Lands Claim Settlement Act (hereafter, the “Settlement Act”);
All submissions made to the Governor’s Office during the period from January 1, 2009 to the present [September 12, 2013] relating to sites for lands planned or proposed to be held by the Seneca Nation in restricted fee status pursuant to the Settlement Act, including without limitation, all sites currently under consideration as well as all sites withdrawn from consideration prior to approval or affirmatively rejected as potential restricted fee parcels under the Settlement Act;
Any information relating to the amount spent by the Seneca Nation to date in acquiring lands pursuant to the Settlement Act, and the amount of funds remaining available to the Seneca Nation for the purchase of additional lands under the Settlement Act; and
All correspondence and other written and electronic communications sent or received by the Governor’s Office during the period from January 1, 2009 to the present [September 12, 2013] relating to the Settlement Act.”

Delaware North submitted a FOIL request specific to the Seneca Settlement Act right after the 2013 settlement was reached by New York State and the Seneca Nation of Indians. Terry Burton was seeking documents that were sent or received by the Governor’s Office regarding the Seneca Settlement Act, meaning there is good reason to believe that former Governor Andrew Cuomo is aware of the fact that the original 2002 gaming compact was obtained via the 1990 Seneca Settlement Act. Ergo; somebody had knowledge of the fact that the 1990 Seneca Settlement Act was the tool used to obtain the original 2002 gaming compact. How could they not? Former Congressman John LaFalce had already laid it all out for public scrutiny by 2013. These issues must be examined closely by Madame Haaland in her ongoing federal investigation. Haaland has already made it clear that she is aware of the fact that her predecessor Gale Norton did not perform her duties, and that the arbitration ruling “may have been illegal.” If only the Seneca Nation of Indians had held out one more day, instead of paying New York State; they would have received a blessing from above in the form of Haaland’s new draft regulations. Must be a coincidence…

Soon we will take a very close look at the land claim case as it relates to the gaming compact. Many of the questions above will be answered and information will be revealed that has never been discussed openly in a public forum. We have only scratched the surface of this incredibly complex web of corruption. Stay tuned.

The Untold Origins Of The Seneca Gaming Compact (Part 1)