On Thursday, the latest edition of the Indian Gaming Industry Report was released.  Authored by economist Alan Meister and published by Casino City Press, the annual Report is a well respected source for economic and financial information about the tribal gaming industry, much of which is not easily available from any other source.  In particular, the Report provides information by state, while the National Indian Gaming Commission reports only by region.  The Report also does a nice job of providing important information regarding the industry's context in law and policy, explaining the basics of IGRA as well as the practical and political realities of Indian gaming.  We think that contextual information is key to understanding the industry.

A few highlights from the Report:

- Though the industry grew despite the economy in 2008, it was the slowest annual growth in the reported history of Indian gaming.  Nevertheless, this is in a year in which the commercial casino industry saw revenue decline.
- Growth was far from uniform across tribes, states, and gaming operations.  The tribal gaming industry is made up of nearly 450 gaming operations run by more than 235 tribes in 28 states.  Some are near population centers, some aren't.  Some are operated by relatively wealthy tribes, others are operated by the poorest tribes in the nation.  Some states have regulatory and political environments that support tribal gaming, some don't.
- As in recent years, a very small percentage of gaming operations account for a huge share of the revenue.  Six percent of gaming operations earn over 40% of the revenue.  That's one end of what Steve and I call the spectrum of Indian gaming.  At the other end, a third of gaming operations earn just 3% of the revenue.
- Tribal gaming continues to impact local, state, and national economies.  In 2008, the industry directly and indirectly created nearly $8.5 billion in output, over 700,000 jobs, $27 billion in wages, and $10.8 billion in federal, state, and local tax revenue.  Additionally, tribes made $1.6 billion in direct payments to federal, state, and local governments.