National Indian Gaming Commission 

w 

NOTICE OF VIOLATION 

To: Herminia Frias, Chairwoman 

Pascua Y aqui Tribe 

7474 S. Camino De Oeste 

Tucson, AZ 85746 

(520) 883-5014 

Stephen Hall, Executive Director 

Pascua Yaqui Tribal Gaming Office 

5655 S. Valencia Road 

Tucson, AZ 85757 

FAX: (520)838-6695 

1. Notification of Violation 

The Chairman of the National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC) hereby gives notice 

that the Pascua Yaqui Tribe (Respondent or Tribe), located in Tucson, Arizona, is in 

Pluu, violation of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) and NIGC regulations for failure 

to submit an annual audit. 

2. Authority 

Under regulations of the National Indian Gaming Commission, the Chairman of the 

NIGC (Chairman) may issue a Notice of Violation (NOV) to any person for violation of 

any provision of IGRA, NIGC regulations, or any provision of a tribal gaming ordinance 

or resolution approved by the Chairman. 25 C.F.R. $ 573.3. 

3. Applicable Federal and Tribal Laws 

A. IGRA requires an annual audit of each gaming operation and requires that a copy 

of the results of the annual audit be submitted to the NIGC. 25 U.S.C. 

9 27 1 O(b)(2)(C). 

B. NIGC regulations require that a tribe cause to be conducted annual independent 

audits of the financial statements of each gaming operation on Indian lands and 

submit a copy of the audit report(s) and any management letter(s) setting forth the 

results of the annual audit(s) to the NIGC within 120 days after the end of each 

fiscal year. 25 C.F.R. $5 571.12 and 571.13. 
C. Part I Chapter 1.000 of the Pascua Yaqui Tribe of Arizona's Gaming Ordinance 

(Ordinance), as amended - the Tribe's approved gaming ordinance - was enacted 

to comply with the requirements of the NIGC. 

D. Part I Chapter 5.000 of the Ordinance requires that the Tribe shall cause to be 

conducted annually an independent audit which shall be submitted to the NIGC. 

E. Part I Chapter 8.020 (2) of the Ordinance requires that the independent certified 

accountants conduct an audit and an appropriate report at the conclusion of the 

audit and submit a copy to the NIGC. 

4. Role of Independent Audit Report 

Submission of the annual independent audit report by a firm of certified public 

accountants is critical to the NIGC's mission to protect the integrity of Indian gaming. A 

firm's ability to conduct an audit in accordance with generally accepted auditing 

standards and render an opinion on the financial statements prepared in conformity with 

generally accepted accounting principals provides a certain level of assurance as to the 

security of tribal gaming revenues. The audit report prepared and submitted on a timely 

basis is evidence of, among other things, the integrity of the gaming operation and, more 

specifically, of the adequacy of the books and records, the functioning of the internal 

financial controls, and the disclosure of information having a bearing on the financial 

statements. 

5. Circumstances of the Violation 

A. Respondent is a federally recognized Indian Tribe with tribal headquarters in 

Tucson, Arizona. 

B. Respondent operated its gaming facility, Casino of the Sun, during all or part of 

2004 and 2005. 

C. Respondent operated its gaming facility, Casino del Sol, during all or part of 2004 

and 2005. 

D. The NIGC has not received an audit report for the fiscal year ending September 

30,2005. The audit report was due to the NIGC on January 30,2006, 120 days 

after the end of the Tribe's fiscal year. 

E. IGRA requires that tribes submit annual audits of each gaming facility. 25 U.S.C. 

5 2710(b)(2)(C). NIGC regulations require that a tribe cause to be conducted an 

annual independent audit of the financial statements of each gaming operation on 

Indian lands and submit a copy of the audit report(s) and any management 
letter(s) setting forth the results of the annual audit(s) to the NIGC within 120 

days after the end of each fiscal year. 25 C.F.R. $$ 571.12, 571.13. The Tribe is 

therefore in violation of these statutes and regulations, as well as Part I Chapter 

1.000, Part I Chapter 5.000 and Part I Chapter 8.020 (2) of the Ordinance, for 

failure to comply with IGRA. 

F. On February 24,2006, NIGC issued a Preliminary Notice of Violation (PNOV) 

V06-009 to the Tribe. 

G. The Tribe failed to provide a written response to the PNOV within ten (10) days 

of its receipt. 

6. Measures Required to Correct these Violations 

There is no way to rectify the late submission of an annual audit. NIGC regulations 

require that audits be received within 120 days of the end of the fiscal year. 25 C.F.R. 

$ 571.13. 

7. Appeal 

Within 30 (thirty) days after service of this Notice of Violation, Respondent may appeal 

to the full Commission under 25 C.F.R. Part 577 by submitting a notice of appeal and, if 

desired, request for hearing to the National Indian Gaming Commission, 1441 L Street, -I' NW, Ninth Floor, Washington, DC 20005. Respondent has a right to assistance of 

counsel in such an appeal. A notice of appeal must reference this Notice of Violation. 

Within ten (10) days after filing a notice of appeal, Respondent must file with the 

Commission a supplemental statement that states with particularity the relief desired and 

the grounds therefore and that includes, when available, supporting evidence in the form 

of affidavits. If Respondent wishes to present oral testimony or witnesses at the hearing, 

Respondent must include a request to do so with the supplemental statement. The request 

to present oral testimony or witnesses must specify the names of proposed witnesses and 

the general nature of their expected testimony, whether a closed hearing is requested and 

why. Respondent may waive its right to an oral hearing and instead elect to have the 

matter determined by the Commission solely on the basis of written submissions. 

8. Fine--Submission of Information 

The violation cited above may result in the assessment of a civil fine against Respondent 

in an amount not to exceed $25,000 per violation per day. Under 25 C.F.R. 8 575.5(a), 

Respondent may submit written information about the violation to the Chairman within 

15 days after service of this notice of violation (or such longer period as the Chairman of 

the Commission may grant for good cause). The Chairman shall consider any 
ining the facts surrounding the violation and the amount 

PHIQ~~~~OGEN 

Chairman 

National Indian Gaming Commission 
DECLARATION OF CHRISTOPHER WHITE 

I, Christopher White, declare under penalty of perjury, that the following is true and 

correct: 

1. I am employed as a financial analyst at the National Indian Gaming 

Commission (NIGC) and have held this position since May of 2005. 

2. In the course of my duties with the NIGC, I receive annual audit reports and 

related documents submitted by tribes pursuant to the Indian Gaming 

Regulatory Act, applicable provisions of the tribes' gaming ordinances and 

NIGC regulations governing audit reports. I track the receipt of these audit 

reports and maintain a record of the date upon which all audit reports are 

received by the Division of Contracts at the NIGC. 

3. I am aware that NIGC regulation 25 C.F.R. tj 571.13 requires tribes to submit 

annual audits for each gaming operation to the NIGC within 120 days of the 

end of the each gaming operation's fiscal year. 

4. The Pascua Yaqui Tribe's fiscal year ends September 30 of each calendar 

year. 'rUrulr 

5. According to the records that I reviewed that I maintain, the Pascua Yaqui 

Tribe has not submitted an audit report for Casino of the Sun or the Casino 

Del Sol for the fiscal year which ended September 30,2005. The 2005 fiscal 

year audit was due Monday, January 30,2006. 

6. I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct. 

Dated this 2 0 day of March 2006. 
v 

DECLARATION OF RONALD RAY 

I, ~onalb Ray, declare under penalty of perjury, that the following is true and correct: 

1. I am a Field Investigator for the Phoenix, Arizona, Office of Enforcement of the 

National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC). In this capacity, it is my 

responsibility to develop enforcement actions against individuals, Indian tribes, 

and gaming operations that violate NIGC regulations or the provisions of the 

Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA). 

2. I am aware of gaming operations conducted by the Pascua Yaqui Tribe (Tribe) at 

the following facilities: 

Casino del Sol 

Casino of the Sun 

3. To the best of my knowledge, gaming operations were conducted by the Pascua 

Yaqui Tribe during all or part of the time period between January 1, 2004, to 

September 30,2005. 

4. On February 24, 2006, NIGC issued a Preliminary Notice of Violation (PNOV) 

qw' V06-009 to the Tribe. 

5. The Tribe failed to provide a written response to the PNOV within ten (10) days 

of.receipt. The Tribe did respond within thirty (30) days, but did not provide any 

time fiaine for the correction of the problem. The Tribe has been out of 

compliance with NIGC regulations, 25 C.F.R. §§ 571.12 and 571.13, as of 

January 30,2006. 

6. I declare under the penalty of perjury that to the best of my knowledge the 

foregoing is true and correct. 

Dated this 27&- day of March, 2006. 

4% 

Ronald Ray, Field Investigator &- 

Region 111 C/ 

Office of Enforcement 

National Indian Gaming Commission