Opinion ID: 1608822
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: The Tribal Gaming Commission's Rejection of the Agreement.

Text: An issue concerning the validity of the contract between the consulting firm and the tribe that may be determined at this time as a matter of law is the tribe's contention concerning the action of its tribal gaming commission. That commission was created by a tribal gaming ordinance enacted in accordance with 25 U.S.C. § 2710(d)(1). Prior to the present litigation, that commission purported to invalidate the agreement at issue here on the ground that it was a management contract not approved by the NIGC. In addition, under the tribal ordinance, the tribal gaming commission has authority to withhold approval of certain agreements that are not management contracts. These are agreements entered into by the tribe's gaming enterprise or by any management contractor on behalf thereof ... if the contract: (1) Exceeds the value of $5000.00 in any 12-month period. (2) Is a contract in which any employee, agent or contractor, including any management contractor employed by the Tribe or by the tribe's gaming enterprise, or any officer or director of any such management contractor or of any parent company thereof has either a direct or indirect economic or beneficial interest. We are satisfied that the tribal gaming commission's apparent conclusion concerning whether the disputed agreement was a management contract is without preclusive effect for purposes of the district court's determination of that issue in the present case. In Crow Tribe of Indians v. Racicot, 87 F.3d 1039, 1043-44 (9th Cir.1996), the federal court determined that a tribal gaming commission was without authority to adjudicate the validity of a private-party agreement with the tribe. Rather, its function was to monitor compliance by management contractors with the governing agreement and federal law. Crow Tribe of Indians, 87 F.3d at 1043-44. With respect to the tribe's contention that the tribal gaming ordinance gives it authority to curtail contracts that are not management contracts if they exceed the value of $5000, that grant of authority is limited to contracts entered into by the tribe's gaming enterprise or any management contractor on behalf thereof. As the district court correctly found, the present contract was not entered into by the tribe's gaming enterprise but rather by the tribal council. Consequently, the contract is not one that must be approved by the tribal gaming commission under the ordinance. The tribe also urges that the compact that it entered into with the State of Iowa acknowledges the authority of the tribal gaming commission to render decisions such as that commission's ruling that the consulting firm's agreement with the tribe required NIGC approval. We are convinced that the decisions relegated to the tribal gaming commission under the compact do not include the power to decide whether a particular agreement is a management agreement under 25 C.F.R. § 502.15. We have considered all issues presented. The judgment of the district court is affirmed in regard to its assumption of jurisdiction to hear and decide both the petition to compel arbitration and the tribe's federal-law defenses thereto. The district court's judgment is reversed to the extent that it attempted to resolve the tribe's assertion of contract invalidity under 25 U.S.C. § 2711 without a hearing and the presentation of evidence relating to that issue. The case is remanded for further proceedings in the district court consistent with this opinion. Costs are assessed equally between the parties. AFFIRMED IN PART, REVERSED IN PART, AND REMANDED.