MEDFORD — An expected federal decision approving the Coquille Indian Tribe’s Medford casino proposal has triggered outrage from lawmakers and other tribes.

“It would open up a Pandora’s box for tribes to do it in other areas,” said Russell Attebery, chairman of the Karuk tribe in Northern California.

Attebery, whose tribe runs Rain Rock Casino in Yreka, and the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians in California and Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana recently circulated an opinion piece criticizing the expected decision from the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs in favor of the Coquille.

Attebery said he’d gotten wind of the pending approval from lobbyists and others in Washington, D.C. He said he expects the decision to be released in about a month.

The Coquille hope to build a 30,000-square-foot casino on Highway 99 in south Medford if they can get federal approval to place 2.42 acres into a federal trust.

The Cedars at Bear Creek casino would be the second casino owned by the Coquille, which also operates The Mill Casino in North Bend.

In 2012, the tribe purchased 2.42 acres, which included Roxy Ann Lanes and the old Kim’s Restaurant. The Coquille have been working to place the land into federal trust for more than a decade.

In the 12th year of its effort, the Coquille issued a statement Wednesday denouncing “special interests” that are opposed to the tribe’s ambitions to achieve self-sufficiency and are trying to advance their political or economic self interest.

“As the tribe continues to wait for a decision, it seems the unfortunate propagation of misinformation will continue unabated,” according to the statement.

The Coquille, which is waiting for a decision to publish the final environmental impact study, say they continue to trust the federal process and the recognition that the application meets all the criteria for approval.

“Finally, we fully trust the ability of the Department of the Interior and the Bureau of Indian Affairs to recognize that the truth put forward by our small but determined tribe outweighs the disinformation presented by the wealthy and powerful.”

While the Coquille have claimed the Medford area as part of its ancestral lands, other tribes have disputed the claim.

According to the opinion piece from Attebery and the other tribes, “The Biden administration is on the brink of doubling down on this misguided policy by allowing tribes to acquire land for casinos in areas to which they have no historical connection, and are in many instances, the ancestral homelands of other Indigenous peoples. These activities undermine the kinship structures on which our Indigenous cultures rely and the time-honored territorial integrity of Tribal Nations.”

Attebery said in a phone interview that he disputes the Coquille’s claims that Medford is part of its tribal lands. “We have more of a connection (to Medford) than they do,” he said.

Attebery said the Rain Rock Casino, which is in the midst of an expansion and construction of an adjoining hotel and cottages, could see a 30% reduction in revenue if the Medford casino is built.

Attebery said he’s in favor of creating more tribal lands for housing or ceremonial purposes, but building more casinos, particularly in areas far from existing tribal lands, will only hurt the revenue of casinos already in operation.

A lawsuit to block the federal designation of the Coquille’s efforts is a possibility, Attebery said.

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, voiced his support for the opinion piece sent out by Attebery and the other tribes.

“A powerful read on why the Biden administration must reaffirm its commitment to tribal communities and how the misguided policy at the root of the Medford casino proposal is harming tribes across the country,” Wyden stated in a Nov. 17 post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Other legislators in California and Oregon have criticized the Coquille’s proposal, including Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek.

Kotek said in April she favors having one casino per tribe in Oregon.

Responding to Kotek’s criticism, Brenda Meade, chair of the Coquille, said in a press release that she’d hoped the governor would respect federal law and the economic interests of tribes.

Instead, she said, the governor is basically throwing her support behind the Oregon Lottery, one of the biggest competitors to casinos.

“But it’s no surprise that the boss of Oregon’s biggest gaming enterprise wants to lock out competition,” Meade said.

The Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians estimates its Seven Feathers Casino Resort in Canyonville would see a 25% drop in revenue if the Coquille build a Medford casino.

Cow Creek CEO Michael Rondeau has stated, “The Coquille Tribe’s reservation is on the Oregon Coast — 160 miles from Medford. They have no ancestral ties to the land they purchased and are trying to bypass the proper legal process to build an off-reservation casino. If approved, this would be the first off-reservation casino in Oregon with 650 slot machines — and mark the beginning of the mass proliferation of casinos across Oregon, big and small.”

This story has been updated with comment from the Coquille Tribe.