11/17/2017 FRI 7i57 FAX 

November 16, 2017 

· Mr. J~nodev Chaudhuri, Chairman 

. NationaJ Indian Gaming Commission 

1849 C Street NW 

· Mail stop # 1621 

Washington, DC ·20240 

Re: Comments on October 17, 2017 Notice of Proposed Rulemaking Amending fOJA 

Procedures in 2~ C.F .R. § S 1 ·7 

Dear Chairman Chaudhuri: 

~O O 1IOO2 

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On behalf of The Mohegan Tribe, we hereby submit ttie following comments on the National Indian 

Gaming Commission's ("NlGC'') Notice of Proposed Rulemakirtg ("Proposed Rule'') is.sued on October 

17, 2017[1] containing proposed amendments to 25 C.F.R. Pait S 17 ( 11 Part 517''), Freedom oflnformation 

Act (''FOIA") procedures for the NIGC. The United States Congress has amended FOIA twice sinc;e the 

last comprehensive revisions to Part 517 on· April 19, 2006[2]: We are.pleased that the NIQC is now ·. 

willing to take up the important task 0£ updating Part 517 to r.eflect the latest am.endments to FOIA, and 

we applaud the NIGC's efforts to bring greater clarity and transparency to the FOJA process. 

While we generally support the NIGC's e.fforts to streamline FOIA proc~ssing, we are deeply concerned 

with the proposal to remove the term "record" from the definitions section of the re~ulation. It is unclear 

to us whether this action was due to an oversight or an intentional omission since the Proposed Rule'does 

not provide any explanation for this proposed change. 

Nonetheless, ·we find the proposed removal of such a critical definition to be deeply troubling. The term 

is not only used repeatedly throughout Part 517, but is the very term that describes whe.t is being sought in · 

· a FOIA request. The term, is, therefore, essential to understanding ~d interpreting the NIGC's FOIA 

'process. We note that under FOIA, agencies are given the discretion to develop1heir own defini~ions of 

"record,''. and that most agencies, including the U.S. Department of the Interior,[3] have adopted specific 

definitions of "recor(i 11 in their FOIA procedures. . · 

W~ believe the NIGC's current definition of "record" in 25 C.F;R. § 5 l 7.3(h) ap'propriately describes the . 

scope of materials accessible :via a FOJA request to the NIGC. We, therefore, urge the NIGC to retain the' 

existing definition of ''record'' in order to ensure that the final rule properly defihes the scope of 

information that will be ~ubject to the F~IA pi·ocesses contained therein. 

THE MOHEGAN TRIBE 

" 13 Crow Hill R!)ad • Uncasville, CT 06382. • Telephone (~60) 862-6100 

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11/l7/2 0 l 7 FRI° 7: 5 8 FAX ~002/002 

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In closing, we would like to 'thank you for this oppprt\.mity tb share Otll' views and comments on the 

proposed changes reflecte'd in the Proposed Rule for Part 517. We 1-espectfully, seek your favorable 

consideration of' our comments and ask that you carefully consider our views and conperns·as you move 

through the 1•ulem.aking process. -

. \ . Ple~e do not hesitate to con ta'{~ us if we, 9an provide any ad~itional infor.mat!on. 

, Sincerely; I 

Kevjl! P: Brown, "Red Ea~le" 

Chairman 

( l] Freedom of lnfonnation Act Procedure~, 82 Fed. Reg. 4820~ (Oct. 17', 2017). 

(2] Freeqom oflnformation Act P·rocedures, 71 Fed, Reg, 20006.(Apr. 19, 2006). 

'[3] 43 C.F.R: § 2.70·(2016). - ' -

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