Indian Gaming on Newly Acquired Lands

This symposium article examines the meaning of the term Indian lands - the lands that might become sites for Indian gaming-in the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988. At its core, the term is unambiguous: it includes reservations and other lands that, at the time of IGRA's enactment, were held in trust by the United States for the benefit of American Indian nations. But Indian lands can include much more. Indeed, it is possible for real estate having only the most tenuous historical connections with a tribe (perhaps having no connections at all) to become Indian lands. The treatment of so-called newly acquired lands has potentially far-reaching economic consequences for American Indian nations, but also for non-Indian populations, which can share in the benefits of tribal economic development. Along the way, the article discusses the basics of IGRA, recent developments affecting newly acquired lands, and whether an expansive conception of Indian lands is a good thing