Interior Department rescinded Scotts Valley Band's casino eligibility without notice, days after donor-backed rival tribe's lobbying push

On March 26, 2025, the Department of the Interior sent the Scotts Valley Band of Pomo Indians a letter "temporarily rescinding the Gaming Eligibility Determination" it had issued on January 10, 2025 — the determination that the tribe's 160-acre Vallejo, California parcel qualified as "restored lands" eligible for a casino — warning that no one should rely on the determination while the agency reconsidered it (a typo-corrected version was released March 27) [1][2]. The tribe received no notice that reconsideration was underway and no opportunity to respond before the rescission issued.

Internal DOI correspondence disclosed in later litigation shows the rescission followed a lobbying campaign by the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation, operator of the Cache Creek Casino Resort about 60 miles from the Vallejo site, represented since 2019 by Miller Strategies — the firm of Trump fundraiser Jeff Miller, finance chair of Trump's 2025 inauguration. On March 19, 2025, Miller Strategies lobbyist Katja Gunn asked Deputy Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Ken Bellmard for "a two-step approach" in which a rescission notice would go out "quickly" ahead of substantive reconsideration; the next day Bellmard assigned two DOI lawyers the task, and they returned a draft letter that same evening [1]. Yocha Dehe donated $1 million to Trump's inauguration on January 7, 2025 — three days before the original determination — and $2 million to the pro-Trump super PAC MAGA Inc. on March 5, 2026, while the reconsideration remained pending [1].

Scotts Valley sued, and on October 30, 2025, U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden ruled the rescission violated the tribe's due-process rights, writing that the band "learned of the rescission only once it was a fait accompli," and vacated it while allowing DOI to continue reconsidering with proper notice [3]. McFadden rejected the tribe's separate argument that the rescission was the product of improper political influence; the documented lobbying and donation sequence is recorded here as reported by Popular Information from disclosed DOI correspondence and public filings [1][3].

Updates

2025-10-30 — Federal court vacated rescission as due-process violation [3]

U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden ruled that DOI's rescission was final agency action carrying immediate legal consequences and that the department denied Scotts Valley adequate notice and a meaningful opportunity to respond, vacating the rescission while permitting reconsideration with proper process. The ruling reinstated the tribe's gaming eligibility pending DOI's final decision.

2026-03-05 — Yocha Dehe donated $2 million to MAGA Inc. during reconsideration [1]

While DOI's court-permitted reconsideration of the Scotts Valley determination remained pending, the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation donated $2 million to MAGA Inc., President Trump's super PAC — one of the largest donations the PAC received in 2026. DOI is expected to issue a final decision on the tribe's gaming eligibility in late 2026 or 2027.

2026-06-08 — Yocha Dehe sued Vallejo over Scotts Valley's preview-casino approval [4]

After the Vallejo City Council approved a temporary "preview casino" agreement allowing Scotts Valley to begin limited gaming operations while DOI's reconsideration remained pending, Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation sued the city over the approval; Scotts Valley said the suit was an attempt by Yocha Dehe to protect its own casino revenue.