Duluth sues feds over casino revenue

The city of Duluth has sued the federal government as part of its long-running dispute with the Fond du Lac Ojibwe Band over revenues from its Duluth casino.

The city filed suit this week against the federal National Indian Gaming Commission. Two years ago the commission ruled that the revenue sharing agreement between the band and the city of Duluth violated federal law, which requires that Indian tribes retain "sole proprietary interest" of their casinos. Starting in 1994, Duluth received about $6 million a year from the downtown casino. But in 2009 the band stopped paying.

This latest action comes after Duluth lost a round in a federal appeals court last month. In that case, Duluth had sued the band after it stopped making revenue sharing payments.

Duluth Mayor Don Ness has said more than $12 million that the band has withheld is at stake, plus millions more in future revenues.

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