Tribal Business News

Tribal Business News

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Details: By Brian Edwards; Uncategorized; January 1, 2022

Tribal casino revenue surges 14.8%, but rising costs squeeze margins

14 August 2026 Chez Oxendine

Tribal casinos posted strong revenue gains in 2025, but rising operating costs cut into profit margins, according to Wipfli’s annual benchmarking report on the Indian gaming industry.

Middletown Rancheria steps toward tribal utility with $3.7M solar project

14 Aug

The Middletown Rancheria of Pomo Indians has begun construction on a $3.7 million solar project that will serve as the first piece of a planned tribal utility capable of eventually powering the...

The Insects Moved Faster Than the Paperwork

August 13

Guest Essay. In the summer of 2019, a fire started along Interstate 5 in southern Oregon, at a spot the highway signs mark as Milepost 97. It burned into the forest that the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua...

Senate spending bill would delay OMB grant overhaul affecting tribes

August 13

The U.S. Senate voted 90-6 Saturday to pass the Continuing Appropriations Act, 2027, a stopgap spending bill that would fund the federal government through Dec. 11.

Q+A: Ted Piccolo on data, capital and financing tribal projects

August 13

Ted Piccolo has one piece of advice for tribes seeking financing: Have your data ready before you ask for money.

Cherokee Nation bans hyperscale data centers on tribal lands

The Cherokee Nation has become the latest tribal nation to ban hyperscale data center development on tribal lands, issuing the prohibition last Wednesday after receiving a report from the principal...

Sponsored Storytelling

AI, Genomics, and Tribal Sovereignty: Native Nations Need to Prepare for the Next Frontier

As artificial intelligence (AI) and precision medicine transform healthcare and scientific research, Indigenous leaders say tribal nations must prepare to govern one of their most valuable...

Hoopa Valley Tribe opens data center to support broadband expansion

Economic Development

The Hoopa Valley Tribe has opened a tribally owned data center that will serve as the hub for the tribe’s expanding broadband network in Northern California.

From powwow concessions to a growing Native-owned hospitality brand

Indigenous Entrepreneurs

For many restaurant startups, a food truck is the first step toward opening a brick-and-mortar location. For Indigenous Eats, it happened in reverse.

PODCAST: Native CDFI leaders reflect on progress, policy and what's next

Finance

The Native CDFI movement continued to build momentum during the first half of 2026, even as shifting federal priorities created new challenges for Native lenders and the communities they serve.

Why Infrastructure Stewardship Starts With Knowing What You Own

Sponsored Storytelling

Sponsored Storytelling. Tribal governments invest millions of dollars in clinics, administrative buildings, public safety facilities and other community infrastructure. Before leaders decide what to...

Tribes urge Congress to clarify prediction market rules at Senate roundtable

Gaming

A Tuesday roundtable of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs brought tribal leaders and federal lawmakers together for what participants called the most direct conversation yet about the rapid growth of prediction markets and their impact on tribal gaming and sovereignty.

Murray, Cortez Masto reintroduce bill to expand food assistance for tribal households

Food | Agriculture

Sens. Patty Murray, D-Wash., and Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., reintroduced legislation that would expand nutrition assistance for tribal households by allowing eligible families to receive benefits through two federal food programs in the same month.

Supreme Court declines Chinook bid for federal recognition through courts

Sovereignty

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear the Chinook Indian Nation’s petition on whether federal courts can recognize Indian tribes.

Yurok Tribe gains 125-acre redwood gateway in California land transfer

Real Estate

Save the Redwoods League has transferred 125 acres in Orick, Calif., to the Yurok Tribe, establishing a tribally owned public gateway near Redwood National and State Parks and permanently protecting critical salmon habitat.

The missing data in the prediction market debate

Sponsored Storytelling

Prediction markets — platforms where people stake money on the outcome of elections, sports, economic reports and other future events — are rapidly reshaping the online wagering landscape. They're...

Defense Department pauses next phase of CMMC 2.0 cybersecurity rollout

Native Contracting

The U.S. Department of Defense has suspended implementation of Phase II of its Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) 2.0 program, delaying new cybersecurity certification requirements that were scheduled to take effect Nov. 10 while officials conduct a 60-day review of the program.

California woman fined $10K after admitting to selling counterfeit Native jewelry

Arts and Culture

A San Francisco woman was ordered to pay a $10,000 fine after pleading guilty to selling counterfeit Native American jewelry falsely marketed as authentic work by Native artists, federal prosecutors said.

Dartmouth launches Tribal Sovereignty Institute with $5M lead gift

Higher Education

Dartmouth College has launched the Dartmouth Tribal Sovereignty Institute with a $5 million lead gift that will permanently endow its executive director position.

Q+A: Sam Flores on building sustainable EMS systems in tribal communities

Sponsored Storytelling

In many rural tribal communities, providing timely emergency medical services can be a challenge. Long travel distances, workforce shortages, and limited healthcare infrastructure can make it...

Disney Cruise Line signs 15-year agreement with Huna Totem for Icy Strait Point

Tourism

Disney Cruise Line and Huna Totem Corporation have signed a 15-year agreement securing Disney ship calls at the Alaska Native corporation's Icy Strait Point through at least 2041, extending a partnership that provides long-term passenger traffic for the Indigenous-owned cruise destination.

Appeals court blocks EPA from canceling $20B climate grant program

Energy | Environment

A federal appeals court has left in place a court order that blocks stops the Environmental Protection Agency from canceling $20 billion in clean energy grants and taking back money that had already been distributed. The funding includes about $1.5 billion expected to support tribal and Native-serving projects.

Chickasaw Nation breaks ground on Newcastle medical campus

Health Care

The Chickasaw Nation has begun construction on a major medical campus in Newcastle, Okla., a project that will expand healthcare access for Native patients through a partnership with the Indian Health Service.

Native entrepreneurs don’t need discovery. They need opportunity.

Opinion | Op-Ed

Guest Opinion. The U.S. House’s unanimous passage of the Native American Entrepreneurial Opportunity Act is being treated, understandably, as a small-business story.

Why We’re Paying Attention to Prediction Markets

Sponsored Storytelling

As a Native law student and young professional engaged in tribal governance, gaming and federal Indian law, we have been paying close attention to the rapid rise of prediction markets and the debate...

Senate spending bill would delay OMB grant rule overhaul until Dec. 11

Policy and Law

The Senate Appropriations Committee has moved to delay a sweeping rewrite of federal grant rules that tribal governments say could disrupt funding across Indian Country.

Most Recent

Middletown Rancheria steps toward tribal utility with $3.7M solar project

Tribal casino revenue surges 14.8%, but rising costs squeeze margins

The Insects Moved Faster Than the Paperwork

Q+A: Ted Piccolo on data, capital and financing tribal projects

Senate spending bill would delay OMB grant overhaul affecting tribes