As reported by the Buffalo News: “The Seneca Nation of Indians is shielding
its members from paying millions of dollars in federal income taxes on their
personal share of tribal casino profits. “The nation claims no taxes are due
because the money is tied to a tax-free lease settlement the tribe struck in
Salamanca 12 years before it opened its first casino. “A newsletter to
members of the tribe, along with land transaction records and Seneca filings
with the Securities and Exchange Commission, spells out a complex scheme the
Seneca Nation is using to avoid federal taxes on $75 million in casino
bonuses individuals will receive this year and next. “The two congressmen
who sponsored the 1990 Seneca Settlement Act for its Salamanca leases say
the legislation was never intended to help the Senecas acquire land for
casinos or avoid paying federal taxes on gambling profits. “And the Internal
Revenue Service suggests the money paid to individual Senecas might very
well be taxable.

“At issue are the $4,500 payments that will be sent to each of the tribe’s
7,200 enrolled members this year and the $6,000 they will be paid next year.

“.Federal law requires that taxes be paid on per capita payments to tribal
members from their casinos, and IRS regulations require both tribes and
their members to report this money as income.

“But Seneca leaders say the nation is exempt from those requirements because
the millions of dollars they are paying tribal members do not come directly
from gambling revenues.”