Congress clarifies tribal gaming rules for two Texas tribes
S. 2564 — Tribal Gaming Regulatory Compliance Act · Filed by Martin Heinrich (D-NM) · 2 cosponsors · Introduced Jul 31, 2025 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill clarifies that two Texas-based tribes—the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo and Alabama-Coushatta Tribe—must follow the same federal gaming rules as all other tribes in the U.S. under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act. Currently, these tribes operate under overlapping and conflicting rules from a 1987 law; this bill eliminates that confusion by making them subject to uniform federal oversight, the same as the 200+ other tribes already regulated this way.
Why we flagged it
The bill's core function is to eliminate redundant regulatory language and bring two Texas tribes into compliance with the uniform federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act framework. It is a technical clarification measure, not a substantive policy change.
What the text implies
- Eliminates a legal advantage the two Texas tribes held under the 1987 Restoration Act, potentially reducing their gaming revenue or operational flexibility compared to their current position.
- Subjects the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo and Alabama-Coushatta Tribe to the same federal oversight and revenue-sharing requirements as other tribes, which may increase compliance costs or reduce tribal autonomy in gaming operations.
- May affect state-tribal gaming compacts and revenue-sharing agreements in Texas, as the tribes move from a dual-regulatory regime to a single federal framework.
Who it affects
Ordinary citizens and tribal members benefit from regulatory clarity and uniform oversight. The bill eliminates a legal loophole that created unequal treatment of two tribes and removes redundant regulatory language, promoting consistent federal governance and tribal self-determination under a single, well-established framework.
Named in the bill
Ysleta del Sur Pueblo, Alabama-Coushatta Tribe, Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, Ysleta del Sur Pueblo and Alabama and Coushatta Indian Tribes of Texas Restoration Act, Public Law 100-89, Senate Committee on Indian Affairs
Where it stands
2 cosponsors: 2 Democrats.
- Jul 31, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in Senate”
- Jul 31, 2025 — Referred to Senate Committee on Indian Affairs · Congress.gov: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
Money around this bill
1 lobbying clients named this bill on 2 disclosure filings across 2 quarters, Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $180,000 in lobbying spend. A filing names 4 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.
More lobbying clients named this bill than 0% of bills with at least one filing.
Martin Heinrich, the sponsor, reported $455,777 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.
- Alabama-coushatta Tribe of Texas — $180,000 on 2 filings
Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 17, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the full bill text on Jun 10, 2026; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 16,222 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
Money — Senate Lobbying Disclosure Act filings whose specific-issue field names this bill for quarters ending Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. A filing's amount is reported whole beside the median number of bills a filing names; it is never divided across them. PAC receipts are FEC-reported contributions to the sponsor's candidate committee in the 2026 cycle.
As of — lobbying records through Jul 17, 2026 · page rendered 2026-10-20.
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