NORMAN, Okla. – Rick Hill, chairman and national spokesman for the National Indian Gaming Association, ended his tenure with the organization at its national conference in Albuquerque.
Hill, who was serving his third term as chairman, helped develop the association into a nationally recognized voice for tribal gaming.
He was the Oneida Tribe of Wisconsin’s youngest tribal council member when elected at age 23. In 1983 he was elected vice chairman and was elected chairman in 1990.
During the recent Oklahoma Tribal Governance Symposium here, Hill took time to reflect on his term in office and to ponder his future. Hill mentioned a ‘heart scare’ to those at the conference as he addressed his career change.
He said he is proud of the growth and respect NIGA gained in the past decade and of the unlimited potential ahead. “We are recognized and appreciated on Capitol Hill as well as in Indian country. My job was to be there to be sure it was put together and now we have an institution that matters.”
NIGA is not a regulatory agency like the National Indian Gaming Commission. And though NIGA is not necessarily a watchdog group, Hill said it was NIGA’s job to “hold their feet to the fire” on some issues.
The association is able to look at issues and determine if all the “saber rattling” is justified or if it is a threat to sovereignty in Indian country, he said.
“They are the front line regulators. But, when they go beyond that we say, ‘Wait a minute.’”
Hill identified part of the problem in tribal gaming as regulations the NIGC inherited, that they had to follow, that aren’t necessarily keeping up with tribal gaming as it exists today.
“As technology evolved and tribes evolved, their definitions have become outdated. The tribes really advanced 10 years ago as to what Class II gaming should be (using Oklahoma as an example). They’ve just ignored that. The courts are saying now that the tribes are right.
“The tribes are legitimized because they keep up with the appropriate definitions. The court sees the tribes as responsible with responsible definitions. Sometimes you have to have somebody else say it, though. We’ve been saying it all along, but when the Indians say it, it sounds too self-serving.”
Hill pointed to the fact the NIGC has lost the last five cases it has been involved in as evidence commissioners were overstepping their power in many areas throughout Indian country.
Taxation and gaming compacts still have a long way to go, Hill said, as he cautioned those involved in not only gaming, but convenience stores and gas stations, to keep their eye on the ball. “With new members of Congress, they will study it. … The convenience stores push and they fund certain politicians to push their cause.”
With his political background and his genuine concern for the future of Indian gaming, it seems doubtful Hill will simply disappear from public life.
He said he was worried about how he would react as he turned over the reins of power this month. “I broke down and cried on C-Span, I was so emotional. But we did a lot of good things.
“I have to do some soul searching about what I am going to do now.”
For now he will be satisfied just to spend more time with his wife and family, he said.
He said he wants to see NIGA “keep the fight alive” as he enters his transition period. “They just need to keep doing what they are doing, educating people.”
