The Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians has returned to federal court after the U.S. Department of the Interior reversed course on whether its trust land in Vallejo, California, can be used for gaming.
The lawsuit, filed August 7 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, challenges the department’s July 30 decision that the roughly 160-acre property does not qualify as the tribe’s “restored lands” under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, known as IGRA.
Interior continues to recognize Scotts Valley as a restored tribe and agrees it satisfies the timing and modern-connection requirements under federal regulations. The tribe is arguing that it has a significant historical connection to the Vallejo property.
Latest reversal from Interior triggers another legal challenge from Scotts Valley
According to the complaint, the department abandoned the approach it previously used when it approved the property earlier this year. The tribe argues the latest decision is “arbitrary, capricious, contrary to law, unsupported by the administrative record” and conflicts with both IGRA and prior federal court rulings.
Scotts Valley first sought federal approval for the Vallejo site in 2016, submitting thousands of pages of historical, genealogical, anthropological and expert evidence supporting its ties to Vallejo and the surrounding North Bay. Interior rejected the application in 2019, but a federal judge threw out that decision in 2022, finding the agency had improperly discounted evidence supporting the tribe’s historical presence.
After reconsidering the matter, Interior approved the land in January 2025, took the property into trust and concluded it qualified as restored lands eligible for gaming. The agency relied on broader interpretations of “occupancy” and “vicinity” while evaluating evidence involving Chief Augustine, the tribe’s role in the North Bay ranching economy and territory associated with an unratified 1851 treaty.
The approval did not end the dispute. Opponents, including the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation and Kletsel Dehe Wintun Nation, maintained the site lies within Patwin ancestral territory. During a 16-month review, Interior revisited the record after determining evidence had previously been excluded. Last month the department reversed its earlier approval, concluding Scotts Valley had still not demonstrated the historical connection required under federal law.
The legal fight continued while Scotts Valley pursued a temporary “preview casino” using modular buildings and Class II gaming machines near Interstate 80 and Highway 37. Yocha Dehe separately sued Vallejo over city approvals connected to that temporary facility, while several California tribes urged Scotts Valley to delay gaming until the federal review concluded.
The latest complaint says Interior effectively turned historical disruption of the tribe’s ancestral ties into evidence against it by demanding proof tied too closely to the specific Vallejo parcel. The tribe also says it had already begun operating a Class II gaming facility but was “compelled to suspend gaming operations” after receiving the July decision.
Scotts Valley is asking the court to declare the decision unlawful, set it aside and restore Interior’s January 2025 determination that the Vallejo property qualifies as restored lands eligible for gaming under IGRA.
Following the reversal, Yocha Dehe Chairman Anthony Roberts welcomed the outcome, saying the review confirmed that Vallejo is Patwin ancestral territory and that decisions involving tribal lands should be based on documented historical ties. Kletsel Dehe Chairman Charlie Wright likewise said the ruling protected the integrity of the restored-lands process by ensuring gaming eligibility is grounded in the historical record.
Featured image: Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians
The post Scotts Valley challenges Interior decision over disputed Vallejo casino gaming eligibility ruling appeared first on ReadWrite.
This articles is written by : Nermeen Nabil Khear Abdelmalak
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