California’s Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, has voiced his opposition to two proposed tribal casino projects situated in the state’s wine country, arguing they “stretch the ‘restored lands’ exception beyond its legal limits.” This week, Newsom penned a letter to US Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, outlining his objections to the casinos proposed by the Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians for Solano County and the Koi Nation for Sonoma County. He contended that these developments are “proceeding in a manner that would sidestep the State and] ignore the concerns of tribal governments and other local communities.”
The Scotts Valley Band has been pursuing approval for its $700 million casino resort near Vallejo since 2016. Conversely, the Koi Nation unveiled its $600 million project near Windsor in September 2021. Both tribes have applied to the Department of the Interior (DOI) to have the land designated for the casinos taken into trust—a process through which the federal government partially removes the land from state jurisdiction, converting it to sovereign land, a necessary step for tribal gaming.
Although the Interior Department will consider Newsom’s position, the final decision rests with the federal entity, not the governor. These projects have stirred controversy, facing opposition from local residents and other regional tribes. Critics have accused the tribes of “reservation shopping,” suggesting they seek land distant from their original reservations to maximize future casino profits. Meanwhile, some Native Americans find this term offensive, arguing that it misinterprets the nature of tribal reservations.
The DOI must ultimately determine whether the tribes have ancestral claims to the land. Both Scotts Valley and Koi Nation insist they have historical ties, though neighboring tribes have contested these claims. The Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria, owners of the Graton Resort & Casino approximately 11 air miles from the proposed Koi Nation site, have disputed Koi Nation’s connections to the land.
Further complicating matters, operators of Cache Creek Casino, the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation, and the Kletsel Dehe Wintun Nation, along with local government officials, held a press conference in West Sacramento on Thursday, urging the DOI to reject the Scotts Valley casino project. They described the Scotts Valley land as “Patwin ancestral territory.” Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation tribal chief Anthony Roberts previously remarked that the “Scotts Valley proposal to appropriate Patwin lands” cannot withstand “even minimal scrutiny.”
As of now, neither the Koi Nation nor the Scotts Valley Band operates a casino.
